Libras: Guardians of Sun and Moon
by TigerGirl25
Summary: Seven cubs are taken from their home, entrusted with the power of legends, and taught the secrets of evolution that were kept from them. They must use their power to protect others from the Ultra Kingdom and the beasts that threaten the sake of their world.
1. Prologue

**Welcome welcome to my second story ever written on this website! I've been working really hard on it and have been getting lots of helpful advise from Dreaming I'm Latios, who is an excellent writer! Great person with great stories I encourage you check out. I would love for you to leave a review, perhaps telling me what you think or giving me some advice. I really appreciate and love every single person who reads and reviews!**

 **Just a quick note before you start reading: this is the sequel to my first book, The Wild One. You don't have to read it to understand what's going on in this one, but it might help with understanding the characters in this story.**

 **Now, without further ado...**

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 **Libras: Guardians of Sun and Moon**

 **Prologue**

 **Stop Looking Back**

 _"Dad, you've been keeping this from the entire kingdom?"_

 _An Umbreon named Cyle with sapphire blue eyes sat next to his father, a Jolteon, at a large, round table. Sitting on his other side was his wife, Abbie, whom he thought of as beautiful and strong. Multiple other pokemon filled the rest of the table, each representing the pokemon of Equilibrium and acting as royal leaders._

 _His wife asked, "Why? "_

 _"They discovered new forms of evolution that my father believed were threatening to the Eevee line," the father explained. Like his son, he also had blue eyes. "He believed that the Terrams would eventually try to conquer our kingdoms."_

 _"Mega evolution, regional variants, not to mention Z-moves," Cyle listed. "Pokemon were made to fight, to be strong, and you've kept these sources of power from them? The only reason you even told us was because we're becoming the new leaders."_

 _"The only reason Eevee were chosen to rule were because we possessed powerful evolutionary abilities," the Jolteon argued. "If the pokemon learn this now, they will surely rebel against us."_

 _"They deserve to know what they can do." The Umbreon glanced to his wife, hoping she supported him. "Abbie, what do you think?"_

 _A Flareon, who possessed the same blue eyes of his nephew, Cyle, shook his head. "You don't understand. Mega evolution and Z-moves are dangerous, more dangerous than Yveltal's power."_

 _At the sound of the legend's name, Abbie's twin sister stood up. "How dangerous?" She knew of the harming power of Yveltal. It corrupted, killed, and led a pokemon to kill._

 _"We were still cubs during the war, but we saw how the power affected their minds." The Flareon shivered at the mere image. Just thinking about it was enough to bring back the fear of the situation. "It was somewhat of a disease, something that killed a pokemon from the inside out, sending them on a rampage."_

 _"One got into the castle once," the blue-eyed Jolteon reminisced. "He was acting like a wild pokemon, growling, breaking things, trying to get out. His eyes were bloodshot, his body bruised and bloody."_

 _"The rulers of the Terrams didn't tell their citizens what became of them if they absorbed too much power, and those who lost themselves were never heard from again."_

 _Silence fell amongst the room. It was all too often that a corrupted government would harm its owns citizens._

 _"They want peace with us," Abbie stated. "Our kingdoms were the ones that destroyed theirs, yet they still want to be our allies. It might be a good idea to accept."_

 _Her husband shook his head. "If they're lying to their citizens, they can't be trusted." He had no tolerance for liars, especially when it hurt another pokemon. "But our citizens still must know."_

 _"Zen is gone, Cyle." Abbie rubbed her head against her husband's. She knew what he was really feeling, why he was saying what he was._

 _"I'm sorry."_

 _He pushed his chair back, the cringe-worthy noise of wood rubbing against the floor echoing through the silent room. Cyle left the room, but his wife immediately followed. She wasn't going to let him be alone anymore. He had gone off anytime someone mentioned Zen. While Cyle left the door open, too angry to be bothered to close it, she quietly shut the door, leaving them alone._

 _"I don't want to talk about it right now, Abbie," he growled, sitting against the wall._

 _"You never do, Cyle." Abbie took her place next to him. "We're married, now. I know you don't want to talk about anything too serious because we just got home, but this is what we're here for: each other. We need to be honest and open with each other. That's what you promised me, and that's what I promised you."_

 _Cyle sighed deeply and looked at her with his blue eyes, which were starting to fill with water. "They're always lying to me. Zen, and now my dad too."_

 _Abbie deciphered it easily. Now, he was having trouble trusting his family. "Just because someone lies, it doesn't mean they're trying to hurt you."_

 _"He lied because he was trying to protect himself. He was being selfish." The male Umbreon's anger grew. "Maybe if Zen would've told me, he wouldn't be gone. Had he done what was right, maybe we'd all still be here."_

 _"I miss him, too," Abbie admitted. "I only just got to understand how much he cared about me when he left."_

 _He shook his head at himself. "I know I said I didn't miss him, but-"_

 _"That was almost a year ago. You're less angry at him now, more disappointed, but you still want him here."_

 _"I didn't realize how much I loved him until he left." Cyle forced a laugh in attempt to cheer himself up, tears now rolling down his cheeks._

 _Abbie laughed too, and soon her husband's forced laugh became real. They smiled at each other, both crying. "It'll stop hurting, one day," she stated._

 _"I don't want to hurt anymore, but I don't want to not miss him."_

 _She leaned close to him. "Just because it doesn't hurt, doesn't mean we won't miss him, doesn't mean we won't love him."_

 _Cyle rested his head against hers._

 _"We have to move on from him, let go of that chapter in our lives. Start looking forward, stop looking back." She looked down at her very round stomach, and laughed stressfully. "Twins."_

 _He groaned in a playful manner and chuckled. "Two terrors."_

 _"And my sister's twins too. Four cubs, all the same age."_

 _"Let's not forget Zodia already had that little Rockruff cub of hers. Not to mention Luca and Kila with their Riolu."_

 _"At least they don't live with us anymore, and we'll all have each other for some support."_

 _"You and Cecilia are both having cubs at the same time," Cyle pointed out, amazed. "Guess it must run in the family."_

 _Abbie planted a kiss on his cheek._


	2. Chapter 1

**You've made it to the second chapter! Congratulations! I hope you're enjoying the story so far! I've been working really hard on it and had a lot of help from Dreaming I'm Latios, who is also a talented writer! Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!**

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 **Chapter 1**

 **Pink, Blue, Red, Green**

Lights lit up every corner of the battle stadium, making it so the hundreds of students, families, and fans could see every move. A white dome spread over the top, and a short wall limited the fight within a certain area. The stands were raised up, providing the fans with a better view, and just under them were the members of the two separate teams, each on opposite sides. With the help of several pokemon, the stands were surrounded by an invisible barrier to keep the watchers from getting hit by stray moves. Pokemon rushed up and down the aisles, some selling unhealthy snacks, others arguing with fans of the other team, but most sat on the edge of their seats, cheering.

Out on the field, four pokemon, two from each team, battled full force with each other while the crowds cheered on. The away team, a skinny, blueish-black Sneasel and hard-shelled Squirtle, battled the home team, a slightly muscular Riolu and a short, but quick, Meowth. They launched and dodged moves, creating explosions and clouds of smoke. The away team was down to two pokemon, but both were fresh for battle. The home team, which was who most of the fans were cheering for, still had three. One had already been in battle, another who was just sent in, and the third, the secret weapon, hadn't been put in at all. They had the advantage, for now.

The Meowth took a Water Gun the chest, which put him out of battle, and most of the stadium silenced while the away team fans howled. The referee ceased the battle, letting pokemon come onto the field to get their teammate. The coach, a large Marowak, growled and looked at his clipboard, leaning worryingly on his bone. He looked ot the electronic scoreboard, watching a three drop to a two, showing that both teams only had two pokemon left. The Meowth was supposed to hold the ground a little longer and deal some damage with his Pay Day. The Riolu was already getting tired from earlier battles, and the away team's pokemon were still fresh and ready.

Starting with three pokemon in the front row, a quiet chant started. Then, other home team fans joined in, demanding for their favorite battler. Soon, the stadium filled with shouts. "Lawless! Lawless! Lawless!"

The average sized, brown, quadruped pokemon smiled confidently. She wore a hot pink jersey with the number 06 in black letters on the back. Above the number was her last name in all uppercase letters, which the crowd was chanting. She stood up, her uneven bangs falling over her forehead, and smirked with fierce blue eyes. The crowd's chanting turned into a scream of support as the coach called her over. The tips of her brown bangs were dyed the same pink color as her jersey, and when she took it off, everyone could see the pink tips of her cream-colored collar. She was skinny and slightly muscular, but stronger than she looked.

"Alright Lawless," the Marowak began with a rough voice, "the Sneasel's first Ice Beam is what really got your teammate out in the first place."

"I was watching," the blue eyed Eevee stated, still watching the Sneasel and Squirtle. "The Squirtle's fast, and the Sneasel likes to use his claws, which means they both like to come in close to attack."

"Exactly. I want you and Carson to use that to your advantage."

"Yes Coach!"

As the Eevee ran and jumped over the wall of the battlefield, the crowd cheered again. She waved to them quickly, and jogged to her partner's side. She high-fived him, smiled, and nodded. The Riolu nodded back.

"What did Coach say?" He asked.

"They come in close to attack," the Eevee responded, eyeing her opponents. They smirked toward her and stood in battle-ready position. "Coach wants us to use that to hit 'em with our strongest moves."

"Right. You ready, Steph?"

The Riolu kept his feet shoulder length apart and held his arms up defensively in front of his body. The Eevee crouched low, looking as if she were going to burst forward at any second.

"You know it, Carson."

As soon as the referee blew the whistle and waved the checkered flag down, Stephanie and Carson were thrown completely off. The Sneasel pulled his claws to his side, letting shadows surround them, but instead of attacking the opposite team, he attacked his own teammate. The Squirtle retreated into his shell as the Sneasel swung his Shadow Claw at the water type. Hidden in his shell, hesuddenly rushed at Steph, hitting her paws and knocking her over. He hit the back wall, bouncing off, and came spinning back at Carson. The Riolu rolled to the side, letting the shell rush past him, but his few seconds of distraction caused him to get hit from behind by a Slash from the Sneasel. In response to the suprise move, the crowd gasped at how quickly Carson and Steph were knocked down.

However, the home team fans cheered for the Eevee, encouraging her to keep going. Steph quickly regained her footing, not noticing the relieved yelling, and let energy flow through her veins to form a purple and black orb in front of her mouth. She jumped into the air and fired it while avoiding a hit from the spinning Squirtle shell. The Shadow Ball hit its mark, knocking the Sneasel back a few feet, and Steph yelled to Carson, "Jump!"

The Riolu, still stumbling from the Slash that whipped his back, heard both his partner's warning and the sound of an incoming projectile. He awkwardly flipped backward, narrowly avoiding the Squirtle, but nearly tripped when he landed. Steph landed just behind him, facing the Ice type, and the Squirtle popped out of his shell. Now, with the surprise Rapid Spin move of the Squirtle, they were susceptible to attacks from the front and back. To keep a strong defense, the Eevee and Riolu stood back to back.

"They weren't fighting this well before," Carson stated, gritting his teeth.

"They were trying to trick us by hiding the Rapid Spin."

The Sneasel pulled out his Shadow Claws and dashed at the home team. The Squirtle inhaled deeply, and then spit out a powerful pump of water. To limit the damage, Carson crossed his arms in front of his body and he instantly became surrounded in a clear aura. Steph ran toward the Sneasel as fast as he came at her, letting her tail slowly turn to iron. Carson's Endure cut the damage from Water Gun, and Steph blocked the Shadow Claw with her Iron Tail. She used her strength to overpower the force against her tail and spun around back onto all fours, where she then tackled the ice type.

"A little help here!" Carson called.

Carson held his ground with Endure, while the Squirtle was putting so much force into his move that he had to close his eyes. Steph swiftly turned and ran toward the water type. However, he was ready for her, and completely stopped attacking to retreat into his shell again. He used his Rapid Spin to rush at her, forcing her to skid to a halt and roll out of the way. He went straight towards the Sneasel, flipped on his back once reaching him, and stayed in the same place. The Sneasel jumped onto his spinning partner, a small, bright blue orb in front of his mouth, and as he began spinning he released the Ice Beam.

Steph lept over the blue beam, slipping on the newly formed ice when she landed. Carson wasn't as quick as the Eevee, and was hit on the side of his leg. He fell forward, hitting his chin on the ice, and grumbled to himself. When he looked up, the entire battlefield was covered with ice. Luckily, the pads of their paws made standing on the ice easy, but moving was on a whole new level.

Away team fans whistled sharply at the skill of their battlers special move. It was one they had seen many times before, one that often led to their victory over the opposing team.

Steph growled to herself, determination filling her heart. "Carson, let's get back in the fight! Break the ice and I'll cover you!"

The Riolu nodded and shakily lowered himself to the ground. He placed his paw on the surface of the ice and started powering up his Force Palm. Stephanie used her claws as extra help to speedily skate around the new battlefield, using small Shadow Balls to knock the Squirtle off balance. Despite this being his team move, he clearly could not glide on the ice like Steph and the Sneasel, showing that the move had not yet been perfected. Her and the Sneasel rammed into each other, using the walls to push themselves off to give more power.

Finally, and powerful vibration burst from Carson's paw, shattering the immeditate surrounding ice, and cracking the rest of it throughout the battlefield. The Riolu stood and motion to Steph. The Eevee nodded and jumped into the air, firing a purple orb at the ice type. The Sneasel chuckled and skated back, avoiding the ghost type move, but tripped over a long crack in the ice. As soon as Steph landed, she pushed forward and tackled the Sneasel twice as he tried to stand. It wasn't hard enough to knock him over, but pushed him toward the Riolu.

Carson took over while Steph moved to the Squirtle. He dropped to the ground and swung his Low Sweep at the Sneasel's ankles. As he tripped the pokemon, Carson turned his tail to iron, jumped back up, and slammed his Iron Tail as hard as he could on the Sneasel. The crowd winced, almost feeling the Sneasel's pain.

With the ice now cracked and broken, the Squirtle had better control over his balance. He easily stood and fired a Water Gun at Stephanie. She formed a Shadow Ball in front of her mouth, but didn't release it, and instead let it protect her while the Water Gun pushed against it. When the Water Gun couldn't reach as far as it had pushed Steph, the Squirtle retreated into his shell and came sliding toward her with Rapid Spin yet again. She used to ice to dodge, spin around, and hit him against the wall with her Iron Tail, forcing the Tiny Turtle pokemon out of its shell. Before he could react, she hit him high up into the air with another Iron Tail.

As he uncontrollably flipped higher into the air, she pulled the energy from her heart and let it diffuse through her skin, forming three, electric blue orbs in front of her. She accurately aimed and fired them at the Squirtle. The orbs of the electric type Hidden Power hit their mark, forming a cloud of smoke in the air. Seconds later, the water type fell out of the cloud and landed on the ground, putting him out of battle.

A roar came forth from the crowd as the buzzer announced the deduction of a point from the away team. The home team had the advantage of two against one, and an even better advantage with Steph and Carson on the field.

With only one pokemon left, Stephanie turned toward Carson to see him fighting the Sneasel's back to back Shadow Claw. She pushed off the wall and slid over, Iron Tail at the ready. Carson saw her coming and ducked to avoid another ghostly claw. At that moment, Steph jumped and met the Shadow Claw with her Iron Tail, and their strengths matched. Carson, however, was still open to attack. As fast as he could, he spun on one paw, keeping low to the ground, and nailed his own Iron Tail to Sneasel's side, sending him flying against the wall. The ice type fell quickly to the ground, unable to battle.

The referee ended the fight and announced the home team as the winner. The crowd burst into cheers and shouts of joy. Stephanie high fived Carson, and they jogged back to the rest of their team, who congratulated them the way they usually did: by jumping around and shouting cries of victory to them. The largest member of the team picked up the water barrel and dumped it all over Carson and Steph, soaking them. Their fur drooped down, but they simply laughed happily.

The Eevee, still soaking wet, spotted three pokemon leaning over the wall with their paws out. They were the ones who started chanting her last name before she was sent into the battle. She ran over and jumped, high fiving each of the other three Eevee, and grinned at them before returning to her team.

…

He took a deep breath and stepped onto the starting block. After several weeks of training, he was about to see just how fast he'd become. It wasn't a race, but his heart was beating just as quickly. He pulled the goggles over his eyes, one of which was blue and the other brown. He lowered himself, getting ready to dive in. The tips of his ears were dyed a royal blue to match the tip of his brown tail.

Just as he heard the sharp whistle echo through the room, the Eevee pushed off the starting block and dove into the water.

Sharp needles poked his face as he rushed into the pool, though he was nearly immune to it. He moved his front legs and back legs consecutively, watching the other wall get closer and closer. He held his breath for as long as he could, and when his lungs signalled him to get fresh air, he turned his head slightly and inhaled. He quickly returned his head to the water, focusing on the task at paw. He was moving fast, very fast, and wouldn't slow down. He only sped up.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another pokemon who seemed to match his speed. Determined not to let her pass him, he pushed himself even harder. He saw her fall behind him just a little bit, as if slowing down, and when he looked forward her saw why. The wall came at him quickly, but his nerves didn't waver. He instead curled his body at a fast rate, flipping and barely landing the pads of his paws on the wall, and pushed back off.

He twisted as he speed through the water, rolling back onto his stomach and swimming straight once again. He didn't see anyone in his immediate sight, which either meant he was ahead of everyone or behind everyone due to him not paying attention to the wall. He pushed himself harder, the thought of him being last not going through his mind very well. Adrenaline rushed through his veins. He wasn't getting tired. His small brown body only went through the motions, making him turn his head and breathe without having to think. Everything about the water felt so natural to him.

He touched the wall he started at and let it stop him, finishing his race. He held onto the wall, and he resurfaced and pulled his goggles off. He closed his eyes, focused on his breathing for a few seconds, and opened them once he heard the whistle blow again.

"Times are on the board!" a Dewott yelled to her swim team. "Take a look and hit the showers!"

As everyone else climbed out of the water, the Eevee stayed in for a few more seconds. He loved being in the water, especially after a hard race. However, he was procrastinating on checking his time on the board. He was worried that it didn't improve, that all his hard work wouldn't pay off like it normally did.

While it felt natural for him to be in the water, the Eevee didn't actually start out that way. When he was first put in the water, he was still. The liquid flowing around him felt nice. However, he didn't know he had to move to stay above the surface, and when his head went under he accidently inhaled the water. Suddenly he flailed, and his parents had to pull him out. It was a wonderful experience that quickly went south. Ever since then, he was determined to learn to swim. He pushed himself harder and harder every day. Swimming wasn't something that came naturally to him. He had to work for it.

"Lawless!" the coach yelled. "Outta the water and here right now."

The Eevee pulled himself out of the pool and jogged to the Dewott's side, leaving a trail of water behind him. "Yes Coach."

"Have you checked your time yet? You bet your old one by nearly three seconds."

"Really!" The Eevee's ears shot up and he looked back at the electric time board. Right by his name was his last time and new time. He did, in fact, shave almost three seconds off his time. He turned back to his coach, relieved, and reported, "That's great."

The Dewott nodded and smiled. "It's sure is." She suddenly grew serious, putting her clipboard by her side and looking the Eevee in his blue and brown eyes. "Jason, if you're almost as fast as my fastest water type swimmers, imagine how fast you'll be as a Vaporeon."

"I thought about it before," Jason admitted. "I'm not exactly sure yet but I'm considering it. Whatever happens, happens."

At the school, there were two separate swim teams. One, the obviously fastest one, consisted of water types only, like Squirtle and Buizel. The other one consisted of non-water types. Each team had separate competitions with appropriately typed competitors. Jason, being an Eevee, was on the non-water type team.

"I know it doesn't sound too convincing: your swim coach telling you to evolve into a water type." The Dewott chuckled to herself. "But I'm not exaggerating when I say you're one of the best swimmers I've ever seen."

Jason was quiet. He was thinking about the coach's words.

She sighed. "Look. I'm not telling you to evolve into a Vaporeon. I'm saying if you're seriously considering becoming a professional swimmer, you should consider a Vaporeon. But, I get that it's a huge step in a pokemon's life, and you need to choose what's best for you."

Jason nodded. "Thanks Coach."

"You're welcome. Have a good weekend."

The Eevee remained in his spot long after the Dewott left the pool. He was soaking wet and starting to get cold, but he had to think. He was six years old now, the same age his mother, father, aunt, and uncle all evolved. He was going in for the evolution test soon. A while ago, every Eevee had to evolve into the pokemon the test said they would be strongest as. Now, though, with no single ruler, there was no need to do as the test said. While each Eevee still had to take the test to evolve, they could choose whatever evolution they wanted.

"Hey brother."

Jason turned to see a blue eyed Eevee walk into the room. "Hey sis."

"Thanks for missing part of swim practice to come to my battle," Steph said gratefully, standing just outside the puddle around her brother. Like him, she was soaking.

"No problem. Anything for my favorite sister."

"Your _only_ sister." Stephanie noticed her brother's pensive face, and questioned, "What's up?"

"Coach just told me I'm nearly as fast as her water types."

"Well that's great. And I see you beat your time."

"I know. It's really great, but she just got me thinking about what I'm going to evolve into." He met his brown and blue eyes with his sister's. "You know we've got our evolution test soon."

Steph nodded in understanding. "Yeah. I've been thinking about that too. It just all depends on what you want."

"I don't think I know what I want," Jason admitted, biting his lip.

"That's okay." Steph ignored the water and sat down next to her brother. "You can see what the test says, and just go from there. We'll still have time after the test before we decide what to evolve into, and even then you don't have to evolve. You can take as much time as you need."

Jason nodded, taking a few seconds to think, and smiled. "Thanks sis."

She stood up and pulled him to his paws. "Anything for you. Now c'mon. It's already dark outside."

"Wait I still need to shower."

"Shower at home," Steph advised as she pulled her twin brother with her. "We'll miss our train with how long you take."

…

She leaned downward and forward, cracking her back. Then, she tilted her head to the left and to the right, cracking her neck as well. Outside the tunnel, she could see the stadium lights and here the fans screaming and cheering. Like last night with the battles, most of the fans were rooting for the home team this morning. To her right, a monitor displayed the score. Her team was down by a couple hundred points, which meant she needed to make that up by scoring four of her six shots.

She was a useful member of the Battle Bots team. When she first came to the school, she never heard of Balloon Bots, but wanted to contribute to her school. So, she tried out for the Battle Bots, walking into tryouts without an idea of what she was doing. After being told to hit some soccer balls in nets on a moving balloon pokemon, she accomplished her task with ease, earning her spot on the varsity Battle Bots.

Then, the Eevee heard her name called. "Now, last but certainly not least, Leona Rose!"

She ran out into the stadium, somersaulting and flipping as she ran to her place. The tips of her ears were dyed red, along with her paws, calves, and ends of her collar. She barked to the crowd, showing her enthusiasm, but quickly let that go and focused on the balloon in the middle of the stadium. It was a tall Haxorus with five goals. One on the head, and one on each claw and foot. She got into a low stance, fire in her eyes, and exhaled as the clock began counting down to the start.

Three. Her heart began beating faster as her eyes darted to the six soccer balls placed for her.

Two. She stretched her claws and started building up energy.

One. She leaned back, and prepared to take off.

As soon as the buzzer signalled the start of the three minutes, she released her energy and bolting, a trail of white aura following her. Her Quick Attack made her fast, getting her from the start to the first ball in less than three seconds. She could hear the gears inside the bot working, preparing to launch a ball at her. However, she was faster. She slid to a halt right in front of the soccerball, turned her tail to iron, and smacked it straight toward the Haxorus. Her aim and power was near perfect as the shot gave her almost two-hundred points.

Rather than admire the shot, she moved onto the next shot, narrowly avoiding a ball launched at her. Leona heard the gears work again, this time clicking in a different order and taking longer to load. The next ball she hit wasn't as good as the first, but still went in. Her ears pricked at the sound of a ball being fired, and she turned to dash again. The ball didn't come directly at her, but instead where she was headed. And it wasn't just one. The balloon Haxorus used a rapid fire, shifting its aim toward her.

She stopped immediately and turned around, changing up her plan. She went for the next ball near the other side of the field while a barrage of attacks trailed behind. Even when the noise stopped, she didn't dare look back to check. Her Quick Attack brought her to the ball in just over twenty seconds, but in her rush her aim was poor. It went in, but barely, giving her a low ninety-two points.

Leone growled at herself for the poor shot and went for the fourth ball. She was too caught up in the moment to notice her paws and legs were getting sore, or that her Quick Attack was losing its speed. In fact, she didn't even notice the stronger, slower moving soccer ball coming toward her. She was too focused on the next one she had to hit. Just as she stopped and kicked another soccerball into the air, the Balloon Bot's blue ball slammed into her body.

At first, the adrenaline nullified the pain, but when she was thrown into the arena wall, she felt everything. Her bones shook from the impact of the powerful soccer ball hitting her chest and face. Pressure from both front and back put a painful amount of pressure on her spine. When the ball bounced off her body and rolled away, she limply fell to the ground.

The crowd gasped. A young cub stood on his hind legs and peered over the tall wall, watching as the Eevee fell. His eyes widened and his ears fell back. A worried squeak escaped his mouth, but he continued to watch with admiration and hope.

"Ow," Leona grumbled to herself. She forgot about the time and took a few seconds to stand up. The pain was intense for a couple seconds, but nothing to put her out of the game. She shook her head and chuckled to herself, which pushed the frustration away. She glanced at the clock, seeing fifty seconds left. The fire in her soul lit up, and she jumped back into a Quick Attack, running toward another soccerball.

This time, the Bot sent several soccerballs flying in different directions, all in between her and the last ball. Had the rapid fire not happened, she would've gotten to it first, but she was forced to change direction. She amped up her speed, barely running past a ball's path, and then dove down, sliding on the grass as another ball flew over her. A few feet away was the last soccer ball. She needed to score this one directly, even if it meant losing some power, so she took a deep breath and ran toward the wall.

A trail of white light followed her. She jumped at the wall and used her paws to push back off in the direction of the ball. No Iron Tail, just a Quick Attack with a push of the wall provided a good amount of speed and power. She rammed her shoulder into the soccer ball. It spun as it flew through the air, only a few feet off the ground, and landed directly in goal on the Haxorus's left foot.

The goal gave her one hundred and twenty-five points, putting her team ahead. Everyone in the crowd cheered and Leona wiped the sweat off her forehead. Among those cheering, she spotted three Eevee in the front row and saluted to them before walking back into the tunnel she entered through. Waiting for her back at the locker room was her team, and they immediately jumped around her, shouting cries of joy.

"Look at you go, Rose!"

"You took that hit like a Cloyster!"

Leona laughed. "Thanks guys."

"We're going to champs if you keep that up!"

"Heck yeah we are!" Leona high fived each of her teammates.

Soon after the Bot Battle ended, all of the fans who had come to watch left. The school's Battle team came to celebrate with the Battle Bot, despite it being a school day. But, today, no teachers gave homework, and class was simply review for what they learned in the first quarter of the school year. In a few days, they were going on break for a little over a week. Plus, after winning all of their pre-season battles and competitions, they deserved this party.

All the pokemon from both teams sat and talked, eating bread with Oran and Pinab berries baked in and chocolate covered Bluk berries, and drank berry smoothies. Leona found herself talking with Steph and Carson, going into the topic of the week.

"You ever think about what you're going to evolve into?" Leona asked.

"Never," the Riolu responded, taking a big bite of his bread. "Only got one evolution to pick from."

The Eevee with red paws rolled her eyes at him. "Not you, Carson."

He simply chuckled, knowing she wasn't referring to him.

"Jason asked me the same thing yesterday." Steph tossed her head slightly, moving her pink bangs out of her eyes. "Why are you so worried?"

"Are you saying you never thought about it?"

She shook her head. "Nope. That's what the test is for."

Leona raised a questioning eyebrow at the other Eevee. "So you're just going to take whatever the test says makes you the strongest? You know this isn't Mom and Dad's time anymore."

Steph shrugged. "I think it had some use."

"C'mon guys," Carson interrupted. "We're supposed to be having fun right now. We can talk about this later."

Even though it wasn't an argument, Leona and Stephanie agreed and dropped the topic. "Are you excited for the play tonight?" Steph asked.

Leona's tail instantly swayed back and forth on the grass. "You bet! Liam's gonna be great!"

…

He took a few deep breaths, preparing himself. Five minutes to curtain. The pokemon around him were rushing back and forth, applying the last of their makeup or getting the last of their costumes on. Those not in costumes or applying makeup were wearing black and moving things around behind the red curtain. Chatter could be heard outside, along with the shuffling of paws as the slowly flashing lights signalled the audience that the play was about to start.

He looked into the mirror, making sure everything was right. His red bow tie stood out against his white and black suit and contrasted magnificently with the color of his fur. He had a light brown pelt, a slightly longer snout, and the tips of his ears, tail, and cream collar were dyed green. His eyes were brown like a normal Eevee.

"Liam."

The Eevee turned around to see a beige colored, four-legged pokemon standing behind him. He had dark brown paws, bright blue eyes, and rocks on his neck. Like Liam, the Rockruff was in costume for the play, only his costume was simply a dark blue cape and a hat that was similar to the feathers on the head of a Honchkrow.

Liam nodded and smiled nervously. "What's up, Kai?"

"Mrs. O'Neill is calling for places," the Rockruff respond, adjusting the cape on his back. "You nervous?"

"Of course."

"You've been in the last three plays," Kai pointed out. "This is my first time. I'm not used to being on stage."

"Well I didn't want this part," Liam reminded the Rockruff as he tucked part of his cream collar into his suit. "I'm going to be out there through the entire play, including intermission. I have to talk to the audience."

"How can you possibly have stage fright? You're so talented and you seem so comfortable on stage."

"TWO MINUTES TO CURTAIN!" the assistant directed shouted while he ran by. He quickly backtracked upon seeing Liam. "Rose! Get ready! You're going up before everyone else! I hope you practiced!"

"Two seconds," Liam called as the assistant ran off. He turned back to Kai and gave a nervous half-smile. "Wish me luck."

"Just pretend it's your part."

Liam nodded and walked onto the stage, which was covered by the curtains. The lights were off, so the only way he was able to see was by the glow-in-the-dark tape on designated spots on the stage. It led him around the set pieces and to the curtain. Just under it, he saw the lights go off and heard the whispers stop. Then, a single spotlight shone on the place where the curtains split, signalling Liam it was time for him to come on. He took a deep breath, getting himself into character, and pushed his way past the curtains.

The entire theatre was filled with pokemon. Not one seat was empty. They all focused their attention on him, and he casually smiled and winked, acting with confidence and familiarity. "Hello everyone. I hope you're all having a fantastic time this evening."

In the front row, he spotted three more Eevee, who waved at him and winked. He cleared his throat, stood up straight, and began, "My name is Aris Westney, and I'm going to tell you a story that takes place in a time where our kingdoms were at war. It was a time where Equilibrium did not yet exist, but was divided in three parts: Auras Kingdom, Oblivion Kingdom, and the Tribe Lands. The queen of Oblivion Kingdom sought to awaken the pokemon of destruction, Yveltal, to seek revenge on Auras Kingdom for causing her pain and misery. The only one who would be able to stop Yveltal's wrath was none other than Xerneas's descendant, the Wild One."

He didn't miss a beat. He talked with passion and interest, stuttering not even once. His facial expressions played in with his words, convincing the audience that he was the pokemon he playing.

"Now I'm sure you've all heard of the Wild One. She was a willful and selfless Eevee born in the Umbreon Dark Tribe with her twin sister, who was none other than Yveltal's descendant, the Descending One." The spotlight on Liam changed to a soft red to adjust to the mode. "The queen of Oblivion sought after and found the Descending One, separating her from her family and sister, and unfortunately separated the Wild One from her parents as well. Over the next few years, the Wild One lived alone, orphaned in the forests of Wisp Town, while her sister was raised in Oblivion Kingdom under a false mother. In those same years, the four guardians of Xerneas's power, the Gemini, were found."

The light return to its normal color. Liam jumped onto the stair rails, balancing perfectly while standing up straight. He got close to the audience instead of staying onstage, which told everyone about his character's confidence. At this point, Liam was no longer nervous. He slipped into his character.

"Now, I know most of you fine pokemon know about the whole spiel. It wasn't that long ago, and most of you were alive when it happen, but, hey, we have to take up those two hours somehow, right?"

A couple of chuckles came from the crowd. Liam jumped down from the rails and sat down on the step. "So, the Wild One grew up, knowing nothing of her family, sister, or that she was the Wild One. One day, however, she found the Crysti, the very object that held Xerneas's power, but in order to prove she was the true bearer of its power, she had to compete against others. She evolved into a powerful Umbreon and competed greatly, but in the end, the prince of Auras won the competition, and he was thought to be the Wild One for quite some time, until the Umbreon found out the truth about herself and her sister.

"The Gemini, Xerneas, and the Wild One fought greatly, but the Wild One did not want to harm her sister to stop Yveltal. Instead, she convinced the Descending One of the lies that were told to her and proved that the queen of Oblivion wasn't her mother. In the end, the queen did not survive, but many a good came from the fight. The Espeon and Umbreon tribes and Oblivion and Auras Kingdom united into our own kingdom: Equilibrium. Before the unison, just before the great fight, is where our story takes place."

The curtain's pulled apart and the spotlight on Liam turned off. He sat on the steps and watched as his Drama Club friends acted on stage. He gave his narrative input when he needed to, but other than that, he was quiet. He was a little nervous by the time intermission came, but stayed perfectly in character.

"Is this a true story?" a little cub asked.

Liam shook his head, keeping the speaking pattern and personality of his character Aris Westney. "It is only a fable, little one, made up in the imagination by yours truly, but it takes place during the real life war between the Wild One and Descending One."

"What kind of pokemon are you really?"

"No one really knows. All that is known about me are the famous fables and poems I have written over the years."

"You look like a pretty average Eevee to me, Aris," a pokemon stated, earning snickers from his friends.

Liam walked by slyly, commenting, "Perhaps that's exactly what I want you to think." He winked, causing the pokemon's friends to "ooooo" at him.

The Eevee went through the rest of the show without a hitch. He felt great once the show was over, and received many congratulations from his friends and family.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

 **Evolutionary Rumors**

Four Eevee, two Umbreon, a Jolteon, and a Vaporeon all sat at a round table filled with food. The male Jolteon had a pendant with a red gem in it, and the female Vaporeon, his wife, had a tiara with the same red gem. It symbolized King Arron and Queen Cynthia's leadership over Oblivion District. The male Umbreon had a similar pendant, but with a blue gem to match his pure blue eyes, and his wife, the female Umbreon, had a tiara with the blue gem. King Cyle and Queen Abrielle were leaders of Auras District. The two queens bore a striking resemblance to each other, despite being different evolution, and it couldn't be more obvious that they were twins. While the Eeveelutions were kings and queens, they didn't have total control over the districts in Equilibrium Kingdom. They were the symbolic leaders, but just representatives for their respective districts.

The twins Stephanie and Jason Lawless sat closest to Cyle and Abrielle, their parents. The other set of twins, Leona and Liam Rose, were closest to their own mother and father, Arron and Cynthia. The family enjoyed their breakfast. While the parents had a lot of responsibilities, they still made time to spend with their cubs, and living in the same castle made that quite easy.

"Liam, you were excellent in the play last night," Arron complemented his son. "The best I've seen all year."

The green-tipped ears shot up. "You were there?"

"Of course we were," Cynthia responded in a loving voice. "We had to leave as soon as the show ended, but we promised you we would be at one of the showings."

"Carson and I worked together a lot better at the battle on Wednesday." Stephania pointed out. "And Jason beat his old swim time by nearly three seconds?"

"You beat your time?" Queen Abrielle questioned her son. "That's great."

Jason swallowed his berry pancake and nodded. "Coach said I'm nearly as fast as her water type team."

"Looks like someone's shaping up to be a Vaporeon," Cynthia whispered not-so-subtly.

"That reminds me," King Cyle pointed out, "you four have your evolution test after our vacation next week."

"That's right," King Arron remembered. "After today, the next time you go to school you could be completely different pokemon."

"We don't have to evolve right away, do we?" Leona interrupted.

"Not if you don't want to." Cynthia said lovingly, not noticing her daughter was struggling with the decision.

"Why did you guys chose what you did?" Jason asked. "For your evolution?"

"Well, your uncle and I didn't get to chose," the blue eyed father reminded the blue and brown eyed Eevee. "Before we became leaders, it was mandatory for Eevee to evolve into the pokemon the evolution test said was strongest."

"Then how did Aunt Cynthia and Mom get to."

"Because the were Descending," Liam recited from memory. He used this opportunity to prepare himself for his test. "It was a simple rumor from an old legend, until it actually happened."

Abrielle chuckled at her nephew. "You've got it."

"So how did you chose?" Stephanie asked, curious about evolution in general for the time. "Why didn't you just chose what made you strongest?"

"Well," Cynthia began, "what made us Descending was that no evolution proved to be stronger than the other."

Liam nodded, remembering words from his book that were similar to what his mother said.

"It just doesn't make sense." Steph looked at her nearly empty plate of food, trying to understand the concept. "How can one evolution not be stronger than the other?"

"Watch," Leona joked to her cousin, "you're probably going to get Descending now that you've said that."

Steph chuckled, and then a question arose in her mind: "Is Descending even hereditary?"

The three Eevee immediately looked to Liam, who knew practically everything there was to know about Descending. He paused his chewing and swallow partially. "I dunno," he answered through a mouthful of food. He chewed and swallowed all the Oran berry mush and gestured to his mother and aunt. "There have only been two recorded cases."

"It doesn't matter," Leona told to herself mostly. She looked between her mother and aunt and asked, "So how did you decide?"

Queen Cynthia cleared her throat. "I originally wanted to be a Leafeon, but since I was undercover in Auras, I had to chose something a little more subtle. I didn't like ice or electricity, and an Espeon or Umbreon weren't appealing to me. Sylveon was too girly, and I absolutely hated fire because of my love for plants. Since water helps plants grow, Vaporeon seemed like the obvious second choice."

Arron smiled at his wife and rubbed his head against hers. Steph and Jason looked away, embarrassed, but Leona and Liam smiled at how much their parents loved each other.

"What about you, Mom?" Jason asked, thinking a story from his own mother would help with his decision.

"Well, after finding out I could choose, I made one of the most important decisions of my life in a few seconds. And, I didn't know why I chose an Umbreon, at first," Abrielle admitted. She looked at Cyle's pure blue eyes, silently alerting him. "I chose an Umbreon because I highly admired your great uncle Zen."

Only a faint picture of an Umbreon painting came to their minds. "You don't...talk about him a lot," Leona stated. "Why?"

"Excuse me." King Cyle stood up and left without even pushing his chair back in.

The red-furred Eevee's ears fell back. "Did I say something wrong?" She looked at her parents, who had their eyes focused on the table.

"No, Leona. It's not you," Abrielle sighed. "Zen is just a sensitive topic for your uncle."

"Did something happen?" Liam asked, concerned and no longer hungry.

Cynthia sighed. "Your great uncle Leone was trying to find and awaken Yveltal, but the crystals that contained Yveltal's power, the Crystal Minds, were corrupting him, and he attacked Zen."

"Zen thought he killed his brother," Abrielle continued. "And Zen never told Cyle until we were all about to risk our lives to stop Yveltal. For a long time, your uncle looked up to Zen, just like I did, and it hurt him to know that Zen wasn't the pokemon Cyle thought he was."

"He ran away after the battle between Abrielle and I," Cynthia pointed out.

There was silence for a minute, until Stephanie spoke up. "I wish I could've met him. Do you know where he is now?"

Another long pause before her mother answered. "No."

…

The Eevee placed their lunches on the table and sat down. They ignored the noise their classmates were making during the lunch hour. The four Eevee told a Riolu and Rockruff about what their parents had told them.

"So, wait," Kai, the Rockruff, interrupted. "Your great uncle Zen just left his whole family?"

"Yeah," Liam confirmed with a slight depressed tone. "Xerneas was keeping Leone alive, and when Zen finally saw him after all those years of feeling guilty, I guess he couldn't stand to be around his family anymore."

"Well, Queen Cynthia was the Descending One and she was literally trying to kill Abrielle, the Wild One, and everyone in Auras Kingdom," Carson pointed out. "But, she still stayed with her family."

"She was lied to, though," Stephanie explained, brushing her pink bangs out of her eyes. "Lidia convinced Cynthia that Zen killed her dad, when really Leone wasn't even her dad at all."

"I think the circumstances are a little different," Jason stated, taking a bite from his medley of berries.

"Yeah, ok," Carson understood.

Silence fell over their table for a few seconds, until the Rockruff decided to try to lighten the mood. "C'mon, you guys had to have talked about something a little more light-hearted."

"Evolution," Steph quickly and proudly declared. "These three are worried about which evolution they're going to chose."

"You know everyone is talking about it, right?" Carson put his bread down on his paper plate, preparing to explain as he saw questioning looks.

"Huh?" the four Eevee questioned in unison.

"You guys seriously don't know?" Kai chuckled, surprised. "It's the topic of the month. No one's shutting up."

"Why would anyone else care about our evolutions?" Leona questioned. "It doesn't affect them."

"You're the princes and princesses of Equilibrium!" Carson emphasized, using paw gestures to make it clear. "Everyone knows you and everyone has guesses and bets on what each of you are going to evolve into. I think even the teachers are in on it."

Jason's ears immediately fell to the sides and he furrowed his eyebrows. "What is everyone saying?"

The Riolu pointed a blue paw at Liam. "Leafeon."

One green tipped ear tilted to the side in question. He was confused, but unlike Leona and Jason, his confusion wasn't eating at him. There wasn't a certain evolution he specifically wanted, but a Leafeon wasn't the first thing that came to his mind. Sure, parts of his fur were dyed green, but that was simply because he liked the color. The top two pokemon on his list were a Jolteon and Umbreon, but now everyone thought he would be most suited to a Leafeon. He knew what everyone else thought didn't matter, but it still made him think.

Next, Leone. "Flareon."

Leona knew she had a fire in her heart, but from what she heard, a Flareon was the weakest of her evolution choices. Plus, she was already named after her great uncle Leone, who was also a Flareon, and she didn't want to be even more like him. It wasn't that she didn't like Leone, it was that her name was basically his name with one letter changed. She wanted to be her own pokemon, but if everyone thought that she was a Flareon, how could she?

Then, Jason. "Vaporeon."

That feeling ate at him. He already knew it was coming before Carson even said it. He was a swimmer, one of the best, almost as fast as a water type. His swim friends, his coach, even his parents had all mentioned it. He didn't think it was a bad evolution. In fact, one of his top choices was a Vaporeon, but why didn't anyone say Glaceon or Jolteon or Espeon. It was because no one had seen him on the ice, or running, or how good his grades were. Swimming was what he did, but maybe it wasn't the only thing he was good at.

Finally, Stephanie. "Sylveon."

She felt indifferent toward what her predicted evolution would be, partially because she didn't really care what other pokemon thought she would be, and partially because she was considering all evolutions. Before, Steph was going to wait until after she found out what the test said before choosing, but lately with her brother and cousins worrying about it, she had been forced to think about it. However, she wasn't worried, which made them think she didn't care. But, there wasn't any use in worrying. Besides, she thought a Sylveon suited her. It was beautiful and graceful, but ferocious and strong. Plus, those ribbon-like appendages could come quite in handy.

"Is that really what's going around?" Liam asked with a slightly disappointed voice.

The Rockruff nodded his head. "Ever since your birthday party a few weeks ago."

"Have they been talking about me and Steph longer?" Jason asked, his ears perking up.

"Not really," Kai answered. "You're only two weeks older than Leona and Liam, and everyone just kinda blends you guys together."

"Guys, stop worrying," Steph said through a mouthful of food.

Leona growled, frustrated. "How can you not be worried? Evolution is something you can't undo. It lasts for the rest of your life."

"I'm not worried because all of our evolutions are great!" She smiled brightly, causing her pink tipped bangs to fall between her eyes. "A Flareon is passionate and has a fire in its heart. A Leafeon is graceful and calm, but can hit hard. A Vaporeon is fast on land and water and its calming look throws opponents off in battle. And a Sylveon is beautiful and has an advantage with its stretchy ribbons. I'm not worried because no matter what evolution I get, it's going to be great."

"You know," Carson added in. "My mom was worried about her evolution too."

"How?" Leona asked. "She only had one thing to evolve into."

"Believe it or not, pokemon with only one evolution have trouble coping with that." The Riolu raised an eyebrow at the red furred Eevee. "She wanted to evolve into a Gallade, not a Gardevoir, but only a male Kirlia can evolve into a Gallade."

"Oh, I think my grandpa told me this story," Liam stated excitedly, his ears popping up. "And the Crysti Xerneas gave her let her evolve into a Gallade."

"I think it's so sweet how Luca and Kila got married," Steph hummed with a bright smile. "They were best friends since they were little and they were both Gemini. I just-"

The loud clatter of a dropped tray silenced the lunchroom as Steph fell backwards off the seat when someone pulled her from behind. Unfortunately, her paw was on her own red lunch tray when she was pulled, and when she fell she dragged it with her. The brown Eevee landed on her stomach on top of someone else, and the tray landed upside down on her. Her berry salad landed all over her fur, and some on the pokemon under her. Another unfortunate accident was the other pokemon's blue and sticky Oran berry sauce that got all over both of them.

The Eevee stood up carefully, trying to avoid stepping on the silver body she landed on, and immediately noticed the stickiness of her paws. She backed away, giving the other pokemon a chance to stand up, and saw her legs, paws, and collar covered in blue, yellow, and purple berry splotches. When she looked over her shoulder, she saw more of the berries smashed against the rest of her body.

"I am so sorry."

Steph shook her head and smiled, flicking her wrist to get the berries off. She turned her head and met her blue eyes with his deep green ones. Under all the berry stains, the Eevee had a shiny, silver pelt with a pure white collar and tipped tail.

Then, she felt something deep in her heart. It sparked an instinct deep inside and told her something about this pokemon in front of her. Something clicked in her mind, and she suddenly felt the need to pull an Iron Tail out and begin battling. Not in the violent type way, as if she were mad about being knocked over, but more in the she-was-pumped-up-for-battle type way. It was the same feeling she got before a battle tournament where her heart rate sped up and she was ready to release some energy. However, she felt more energy being generated in her heart, so she tightened her paws to contain it.

"Hey," she greeted, completely pushing aside the feeling as if it didn't exist, "you're Leonardo, aren't you?"

"Yeah, yeah," he agreed, clearly distracted. He wiped some berries from his face and quickly grabbed a few napkins from the ground. Instead of wiping his own paws off, he gently picked up Steph's paw and began cleaning it off. "I am so sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going."

"It's fine. It's just berries. They'll wash off."

Leonardo let go off her paw and frowned, seeing that he hadn't really gotten anything off. "I'm really sorry." He noticed that there was silence and looked around, seeing a lot of pokemon staring at them. "C'mon guys! You've only got a few minutes till next period. Go enjoy your lunches."

And with that, everyone immediately diverted their attention and continued on with their day. Steph chuckled and pointed out, "Looks like we drew a lot of attention to ourselves."

"It was my fault. I should've been looking at where I was going."

"It's fine, Leonardo. I'm really okay."

He smiled. "You can just call me Leo."

"Okay, Leo."

Just as the words left her mouth, the bell went off, signalling the end of lunch. Leo sighed and dragged his paw across his face. "I am so sorry. Now you have to go to class all sticky and-"

"Leo!" Steph nearly shouted to get him to stop apologizing. "I am okay. My next teacher will probably let me go to the locker room and wash off, and if she doesn't then I guess she'll have to clean one of her desks after school."

Leo chuckled and picked up his bag, carefully placing the strap on his shoulder. "Tell you what, I'll bring you some homemade apple pie tomorrow."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "We don't have school tomorrow."

"Oh, right. Well I'll bring you some when we get back from break."

As he turned to walk away, she caught him. "Wait, actually." He stopped and turned, still listening with attentive eyes. "My friends and I are going into the city tomorrow night, so do you want to come? You could bring me that apple pie."

"That sounds great, but I can't. My mom and I already have plans."

Steph wasn't concerned about getting to class. "Sorry, one more question."

"Name it."

"Are you taking the evolution test next week. I mean, you don't have to take it to evolve and you don't have to evolve into what it says."

"I know, and I think I am going."

"Great! Then I'll see you there."

The shiny Eevee began walking away. "Looking forward to it, Lawless. And great job at your battle."

Steph thanked him as she turned around to see her brother standing there. Jason smiled at her and gestured to all the different colored spots on her fur. "You wanna rinse off in the locker room before class?"

She was somewhat relieved that he didn't ask what the conversation with Leo was about. She didn't want to be teased.

"Nah." She shook her head and picked up her backpack. "We've only got two more classes left. I'll deal with it until I get home."

While she walked to class with Jason, she wondered one thing, something that had never crossed her mind before. It didn't even occur to her that she was thinking about it. Did Leonardo think she would evolve into a Sylveon?

…

Liam was a good student, he really was, but today he could not pay attention. It also didn't help that this was the last class of the day, _and_ that his sister and cousins were in this class. He knew that he should be listening attentively and taking good notes, considering that this was the class where the teacher decided to make it her job to ruin students' vacations and give them a test the day they came back from break.

"You bored?" Leona asked in a hushed voice.

"Yes," Liam replied, placing his head face down on his desk and sighing.

"Just be glad you aren't Steph," Jason snickered. "Bored, covered in berries, and getting a complaint from Mrs. Sandomir."

"I can hear you, ya know." Steph whispered over her shoulder.

Jason winked at her. "You know you love me too much to be mad."

The Eevee with pink fur simply smiled, shook her head, and turned her head back toward the front of the room.

"Why is she giving us a test on this?" Leona whined. "Mrs. Sandomir acts like it's the most important thing in the world to know what herbs and berries do. When are we ever going to use this?"

"Well, actually," Liam began, prepared to give a small speech about his range of knowledge, "these are actually good things to know if you ever get lost in the woods. And it's not just on herbs and berries, it's also on evolution and-"

"Liam Rose!"

The Eevee with green fur nearly jumped out of his seat when the sharp voice from the Roserade reached his ears. She sounded angry and harsh, which caused his stomach to sink when she shouted his name.

"Just because you happen to have the name of a plant does not mean you can ignore my lesson and pass my class without studying."

"Sorry Mrs. Sandomir," he apologized quickly, hoping she would drop it and continue to teach.

"Sorry isn't going to do it this time." She picked up a pen, turned on the projector so it shined on the dry erase board, and called him up. "C'mon. I want you to start answering the questions on the study guide _IN_ complete sentences right in front of everyone."

Liam groaned quietly so the teacher wouldn't hear and stood up, doing his best to hide his uncaring body language and sleepiness. He took the pen and sat down at the desk next to hers. As he began writing, the machine projected his words onto the wall. No one was paying attention to him because they all started their own study guides as well and had their eyes on their papers. No one wanted to take this home to do over break.

To Liam, the questions were easy. Unlike the other pokemon who were using their notes and books to find the answers, he was easily able to answer without anything. He finished the study guide within ten minutes, even when he had to write in complete sentences. Everyone else sighed when Mrs. Sandomir told them to put down their pens and pencils.

"Are you confident enough in your answers to say them aloud to the class?" the Roserade asked.

"Yes ma'am," Liam responded, knowing she wanted him to say no so he would supposedly learn his lesson from talking in class.

Mrs. Sandomir, disregarding one of her students, picked up his paper and began reading the questions. "Question one: what kind of berry can return a pokemon's fur to its natural color? Explain."

"Trick question," Liam responded nearly monotone, annoyed with his teacher. He cleared his throat, pretending his tone was because of his throat. "Apricots, not berries, can return fur to its natural color because the minerals inside them draw out the minerals used in dye. As an added fun fact: it's better to use apricots of the same color as the fur, but it's not required."

She scowled at the paper, but Liam knew it was meant for him. "Question two: name all berries that cure status conditions and which conditions they cure."

"Cheri berry: paralysis. Chesto: confusion. Pecha: poison. Rawst: burn. Aspear: freeze. And Persim: confusion."

He answered all the questions on the study guide correctly, only adding to Mrs. Sandomir's anger. She hated students who talked in class just because they knew everything, but she couldn't really get mad at them because they knew all the information.

"Last question: how does an Eevee evolve into each of its evolutions?"

Ready to go back to his seat and to stopped being called out by his teacher, he answered quickly. "Jolteon, Flareon, and Vaporeon all require special evolutionary stones. Leafeon requires touching a special kind of moss and Glaceon a special kind of ice. Espeon requires exposure to a certain type of sun rays, an Umbreon a certain kind of moonlight, and a Sylveon requires two factors: knowing a fairy type move and the other is unknown."

The Roserade sent the Eevee back to his seat, saying she should give him a detention, but not giving him one. Steph and Jason both smiled at him, and Leona winked and said, "Nice job." Liam smiled, sighed, and sat down at his desk. Like the rest of his family, he was ready for break.


	4. Chapter 3

**Fasten your seatbelts and keep all hands and feet inside the vehicle because this is where we start going up the plot roller coaster! Thanks for coming this far, I love you, and I would love it if you leave a review. Reviews are what really inspires author to complete their fanfics and it means so much. Even if you don't love one for me, I encourage you to leave one for others.**

 **With that, I give to you...**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

 **The Restricted Book**

Lamp posts and decorative lights and signs lit up the streets of the marketplace. The lights could be seen from miles away in the dark night sky. All of the stores had neon lights that were red and spelled 'open', all because tonight was great business opportunity. Most students around the kingdom were on break, and the older ones often traveled to Geomancy City, where the best goods were sold, for vacation. For four royal Eevee, this wasn't even considered a vacation. This was just another trip into the city. The castle that their parents live in for a while used to be here, but it was turned into a hotel which made Geomancy City a great tourist destination. Now, the castle they currently lived in was about fifteen miles away, in the city suburbs. Being so close, especially when half of the trains came here, meant they came here to hang out almost every weekend.

Steph stepped off the train, her lock of pink fur falling just over her right eye and her pink bag hanging off her left side. Following her was Jason, his blue tipped tail flicking back and forth in the air and with a dark blue shoulder cover on. In it, he had his money and student I.D., which got him discounts. They quickly spotted two Eevee, one with red paws and calves and the other with a green tipped collar, and a Riolu with a small, black string bag standing by a smoothie stand. The three of them had drinks, each a different color, and Jason and Steph joined them.

"Smoothies good today?" Steph asked as she took out her money and ordered one.

Carson took a long sip from his purple smoothie. "They're always good."

Jason placed his bill and coins on the counter when he finished ordering and turned to his friends. "Are we just waiting on Kai?"

"I think so," Leona confirmed, glancing around to see if he was here. "Looks like he won't be able to pick what we do."

"My dad told me that we should check out the old castle," Carson stated, taking another sip of his drink. "He said they've changed it a lot from when he lived there."

Stephanie thanked the pokemon for her drink. "Well it is a hotel now. They needed to put up decorations."

"I'm up for going there," Liam added in. "It'll be fun to see where our parents lived when they were our age."

"Maybe afterwards we could split up and look around a bit," Jason suggested. "I know I really need to get a new pair of goggles for swim."

"And we can meet back here at eight-thirty so Carson can show us whatever he wanted to show us." Leona remarked.

"Where are you even taking us?" Liam inquired.

"You'll see," the Riolu smiled. "It'll be a lot of fun."

Over Liam's shoulder, Steph spotted a Rockruff running up. "Look's like we can finally get going."

"Sorry I'm late guys," Kai panted as he slowed to a walk. "My mom wanted me to finish packing for the trip."

"You missed your opportunity." Carson elbowed his friend. "We've already decided what we're doing."

"You gonna get a drink?" Steph questioned, taking a sip from her own.

"Depends," Kai stated, "what are we doing?"

"Castle Hotel, split up, then whatever Carson has planned," Jason explained quickly.

The Rockruff raised an eyebrow, but the Riolu simply responded with, "You'll see."

"So you guys ready?" Leona asked, taking a few steps down the street.

Everyone nodded and started following the Eevee, naturally splitting into two conversations as they walked. They passed the trains, which created gusts of wind as they zoomed by. Many pokemon recognized them and greeted them, so the Eevee, Riolu, and Rockruff, being as famous as they were, had to stop and say hello back. However, it didn't set them back at all. They were used to the attention that came with royals or Gemini for parents. Despite that the Crysti that gave their parents their powers were destroyed, they were still seen as these powerful descendants of legendaries.

When the group of friends finally arrived at the castle, it didn't look as marvelous as they thought. The building was made of grey stone, and the drawbridge of wood and metal. Carson noticed the wooden door, mostly because his father told him the door was recently added in. Although Carson and Kai didn't live in the new castle, they had visited it before, and this one looked dull and dilapidated compared to it. The new one was made of white stone bricks, shining silver metal, and glossy, white wood. It was more beautiful compared to this one.

"Shall we see the inside?" Leone questioned, leading the group.

Carson pretended to be hesitate for dramatic effect. "I don't know. If it looks this bad from outside…"

"Houses look old when a new version is built," Steph pointed out with a half smile.

Liam, who was already halfway through the door, shouted back, "Guys check this out!"

They followed him inside and to the right. He pointed up at six pictures on the wall, and smiled. They were beautifully painted portraits with two on the very top, and four below them. The two on the top were an Umbreon and a Vaporeon. A Xerneas composed the background of the Umbreon portrait, symbolizing the Wild One, while the Vaporeon's was a Yveltal, which stood for the Descending One. The four, full-body paintings on the bottom were a Ninetails, a Gallade, a Lucario, and a Swellow, the four Gemini. Each had a shining gem somewhere on their body. The Ninetails, Zodia and Kai's mother, stood gracefully on all fours while holding her chin high and had the orange gem hanging on her neck. The Gallade, Kila and Carson's mother, possessed the purple Crysti on her head and was in an offensive stance. The Lucario, Luca and Carson's father, stood on one foot, the other resting on his knee so it formed a triangle, with his paws pressed together. His eyes were closed, the aura-sensing appendages on his head raised, and the blue Crysti shining on his wrist. Last, but not least, was the Swellow, Swipe who had not had any children. His body was turned to show the red gem on his back, and his wings were spread far out.

Kai stared up at his mother, the cream, nine-tailed pokemon with the orange Crysti. "I would've loved to have seen my mom in action."

"I would've loved to have seen the Crysti," Leona admitted without guilt. When she received a couple of raised eyebrows, she elaborated, "Oh come on. Gems that hold Xerneas's power and you wouldn't want to try those out?"

They laughed, but didn't protest.

"Excuse me, may I help you?" The six pokemon admiring the paintings turned around to see the hotel manager standing with his arms folded behind his back. When he recognized the princes and princesses, he quickly smiled. "Ah, the princes and princesses, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Hi," Steph greeted quickly before getting to her point. "We just wanted to see the place our parents lived, if that's okay with you?"

Of course, he wasn't able to say no to the royals. Could anyone say no to them? "It's no problem at all. Feel free to stay as long as you like. Please don't disturb the guests in their rooms."

"We won't. Thank you, sir." Leona smiled and turned back to her friends, waiting until the manager left. "You guys wanna check out the backyard. Mom told me it had a huge garden, a maze, and a clock embedded in the ground."

Carson tilted his head slightly. "A clock? In the ground?"

Leona shrugged. "It's what I was told."

"Let's go check it out." The Rockruff insisted.

Kai gently nudged the Riolu as he walked by and started down a random hallway with four Eevee. Carson was about to follow them when he suddenly felt an overwhelming power was through his body. It flowed through his veins and into his paws, as if trying to tell him to form a move. It gave him the feeling that the move would be strong, stronger than he's ever been before, so he didn't. His heart sped up, as if it were making more energy to use in battle. He pushed it away and looked around to see if anyone else was affected by this, but the pokemon continued on with their night as if nothing happened.

He shook his head and jogged to keep up with his friends. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a shiny silver pelt walking down a different hallways. His instincts told him to go to the white pokemon, but when he stopped to see who it was, it was gone. He would've gone after the white pokemon, but heard Leona call his name and proceeded to follow her voice.

The group of friends had no idea how to get to the backyard, and since it was nighttime, most of the employees weren't wandering the halls and bothering guests. They had to rely on maps, and the Eevee wondered why there weren't maps in their own castle. Eventually, after going to the ice rink and skating around, they made it to the backyard.

"Now this is a garden," Liam noted with an amazed smile. "Ours isn't nearly as nice as this."

Soft, plush grass covered the entirety of the backyard. A section dedicated to berry trees created a forest environment, and another section of Bitterroot bushes towering up at least nine feet created a dark maze. What really caught attention was the giant crystals in the center of the garden. Twelve, multicolored crystals were set in a circle around the giant one, all equal length apart. Clear glass protected the ticking hands of the black and white clock in the ground, and the clock ticked close to seven-thirty p.m.

"Told ya," Leona smirked to Carson. "A clock embedded in the ground."

Carson simply let out a chuckle of disbelief.

Steph jumped up on a green and blue crystal and sat down comfortably. "It makes for a pretty cool hangout."

"I don't know about you guys," Kai started, "but I'm going to try out the maze."

"I'm coming too," Jason added, following the Rockruff.

Liam stood up and joined them. "Same here."

"No, no, no," Leona disagreed. She turned to Carson and Steph. "It's going to be more fun if we all go together. C'mon you two."

The Eevee and Riolu exchanged glances, smiled, and joined their friends. Steph immediately jogged ahead and looked at the 'How To Play' sign on the bush. She read quickly, skipping unnecessary words, as the others calmly walked over.

Leona stretched her claws out. "So, how do we play?"

Steph paraphrased quickly, smirking to say she was ready to beat everyone else at the game. "Red glowing flag hidden somewhere inside. We all start at the same time and try to get the flag. The first one back to the entrance with the flag wins."

"Seems simple enough." Kai got into a low stance, ready to run. "Ready?"

Everyone copied him, exchanging glances with each other.

"Three. Two. One...Go!"

As soon as he stepped into the maze, overwhelming power rushed into his body. His senses were enhanced. Kai could smell another pokemon in the maze, but it wasn't any of his friends. This was a different pokemon. He felt energy pulse through his veins, as if telling him to form a move, but this felt different. His dark brown paws swept over the ground, mimicking a Quick Attack, and as he kept running, taking many turns to try to find the flag, his heart sped up. It felt like it was trying to produce more energy.

Just as Kai was about to turn a corner, he collided with a shiny pokemon. The impact caused him to flip over the other pokemon and tumble along the ground. It hurt, but not enough to actually injure him. What stunned him was what happened when he came in contact with the other pokemon. All the energy his heart was producing suddenly shocked him, as if leaving his body suddenly, just like when he unleashed a move. This feeling confounded him, and he hadn't even realized he was still lying on the ground.

The silver Eevee quickly stood and approached him, holding out a paw. "I'm so sorry I ran into you. I should've been watching where I was going."

Kai simply smiled, pushed away the feeling in his chest, and grabbed onto the silver paw. "No harm, no foul."

"You sure, dude?" he asked. "That was a pretty hard hit."

"I'm tough," Kai stated, brushing the grass off his legs. "You're Leonardo, right?"

He scratched the back of his head, as if embarrassed. "Yeah, that's me. I had a messy run in with your friend the yesterday. Is she still mad about that?"

"She wasn't even mad in the first place."

"You boys talking about me?" Steph walked around the corner right up to the Eevee and Rockruff, holding a red flag in her mouth. "Hey Leo. I thought you were doing something with your mom today."

His ears fell back. "I got called in for a shift today and was offered double pay, so my mom and I rescheduled." He grinned embarrassingly. "Sorry I didn't tell you. I feel bad after you invited me to come hang out with you guys."

"No sweat, Leo." Steph responded calmly and with a smile. Deep down in her heart, she felt the same power as Kai did, but didn't show it. "It's not like you lied to me. Your plans just changed."

He sighed in relief. "Good. I didn't want you to be mad at me. Especially after I got those berries all over you."

Liam sighed as he walked next to Jason. They stared into the empty area where the red flag should've been. "Flag's gone."

"How much do you wanna bet it was Steph who got it?" Jason asked, not really expecting an answer.

Liam laughed, but stopped once energy rushed through his veins. His heart sensed another presence, a powerful one. It told him to use a move, any move, but told him something different at the same time. Unlike Steph and Kai, he reacted on the feeling and began walking a bit faster. The closer he got to wherever it was leading him, the stronger the feeling became. His heart beat faster.

Jason noticed the strange behavior, but suddenly realized what his cousin was reacting on. Something tugged at his heart, telling him to go where it said. He didn't know what it was, but listened anyway. Soon, he was walking at the same pace as Liam with a curious look on his face. Waves of energy pulsed through his veins, but it felt different from when he formed Shadow Balls. It was almost telling him to make energy for moves, but to use it for something else.

They both silently slid forward, ears perked and listening. Familiar voices came to them: Steph and Kai. The voices got louder as they went closer, and another, unfamiliar voice rang in their ears. Once they turned one more corner, they saw the Rockruff and two Eevee. One of them had a shiny pelt and green eyes.

Before Jason could mention the feeling, Liam spoke up. "Looks like I was right. Steph got the flag."

Steph turned her head and smiled back. "You know it, Liam."

The two pokemon joined the circle of three, making it slightly larger. "What are you doing here?" Liam asked casually, nodding his head to Leo.

"It's my shift right now." The Eevee explained.

Leona's voice came from behind Kai. "I thought I felt someone over here."

Leona and Carson walked around the hedge corner and met up with everyone else. As soon as they got close enough, both of them felt the same thing in their chest as Jason, Liam, Steph, and Kai. Their hearts produced energy, not for moves but for something else. The only one who felt nothing was Leonardo.

"The flag was gone," the Eevee with red fur explained. "So I assumed you had it Steph."

"Do you guys feel that?" Carson asked, looking around as if trying to find a source. "I can't be the only one."

Leo's ears tilted in question. "What do-"

"LEONARDO STEELE IN THE LOBBY. LEONARDO STEELE IN THE LOBBY."

The seven pokemon cringed at the loud sound of the loudspeaker calling for a pokemon. Leo sighed. "Sorry guys. I gotta go." He stood up and began running toward the entrance of the maze. He looked over his shoulder and shouted, "I'll see you next week at the evolution test!"

They all waved and shouted goodbye, and as soon as they were quiet, Carson asked the same question. "So did anyone feel that?"

"The pressure on my chest?" Kai asked for confirmation.

"It's gone now," Jason mentioned, "but I felt it."

"Same here." Leona agreed.

"Me too," Liam added. "Jason and I both felt it at the same time."

"It's happened before." Steph furrowed her eyebrows. "Yesterday at school. It felt like I was forming a move, but not exactly like that."

"I felt it earlier in the hotel lobby," Carson explained with an uncertain look. "My heart started beating really fast."

"As soon as I got into the maze I felt it." Kai bit his lip, remembering the feeling in his chest. "I thought it was just me."

"Apparently it's all of us," Leona chuckled. "Maybe it was just the atmosphere of the places we were at. I'm sure it's nothing."

"But we all felt it," Jason pointed out with curious eyes.

"I don't know," Steph stated, unsure. "It doesn't really seem to make sense."

"Well..." Kai dragged the word on, looking up to think. "...what doesn't make sense is why you would put the flag down when the winner is whoever carries it out of the maze."

Before anyone could soak in his words, the rock type snatched the glowing flag and bolted in the direction he came. He laughed, hearing Stephanie chase after him.

…

"Carson," Jason called worriedly. "Why are we at the school?"

At night, their school looked entirely different. All the lights were off, except the ones around the fence, but those were spread so far apart that long gaps of darkness hung over most parts. The buildings had a creepy vibe around them, giving the group of friends the chills. The Riolu threw his bag over the chainlink fence and squeezed through the hole underneath. It was almost dark enough for him not to be seen. Once he was on school property, he brushed off the dirt and picked up his bag, swinging it onto his shoulders.

"I told you. We're here to have some fun."

"It's actually pretty cool being at school at night when no one else is here." Steph took off her bag and left it in a nearby bush, deciding she didn't need it here, and followed her friend under the fence. "I just wish I wouldn't get in trouble if I got caught."

"That's the fun in it." Leona smirked and backed up. She drew energy from her heart, surrounded herself in a white aura, and bolted with her Quick Attack. At the perfect time, she jumped and hooker her claws onto the fence. With the same speed, she pulled herself over and landed perfectly on her paws. She bore another smirk at her cousin as the aura dissolved into the air. "It's the thrill of not knowing if you're gonna get got."

"This does not seem like a good idea," Jason spoke honestly.

"I'm in," Liam easily agreed, crawling under the fence with ease.

Jason sighed, letting his ears fall against his head, but followed his friends into the school. "I just have the feeling we're gonna get caught."

"You can wait here, if you want," Kai stated simply as he jumped down from the top of the chainlink fence. Being bigger than the Eevee, he couldn't fit under the fence.

Jason rolled his eyes in defeat, but smile nonetheless. "If you guys get caught, someone has to be there to bail you out."

Crossing the dark field was easy, considering there were no guards. As they stepped into the school courtyard, Liam asked, "What are we even doing here?"

"I've got something to show you guys," Carson replied, checking all around for any guards. "Keep your voice down."

"I'm not complaining. This is fun," Leona whispered with a grin. "But why couldn't you show us somewhere else?"

"We've gotta be someone dark and scary." Carson held tightly on his backpack. "What better place than at school at night?"

"When we're not supposed to be here," Steph added in a hushed voice.

"Exactly. So where is the creepiest place in the school?"

"Swimming pool," Jason pointed out immediately.

"Dude, nice," Kai smiled, elbowing his friend playfully. "It's all cold and dark. It's perfect."

"It's also the least guarded," the blue-furred Eevee mumbled under his breath.

His sister heard his last comment and chuckled at him. "There's only one or two guards at the school at night you know."

"Yeah, but everyone's pretty much terrified of going in there. It's like a horror film waiting to happen."

Just like Jason had said, the swimming pool at night seemed like it was straight out of a horror movie. The only light was from the small one under the water in the pool, and the only noise was from the small vacuum cleaning it. Every couple of minutes, it made a suction-like noise to reboot and continue its job. The six friends walked in, and immediately shivers rolled down their spines. Carson, Kai, and Leona smiled excitedly at the creepy atmosphere, Steph and Liam chuckled nervously, also a little eager, and Jason was too busy watching for guards to feel nervous. Plus, swimming late at night almost every night also contributed to the fact that he wasn't nervous. They all got a feeling in the pit of their stomach that combined worry for getting caught and excitement for getting away with being here.

The six friends climbed into the stands on the side of the room and sat down facing each other. Carson sat on the higher step, and the others gathered around him, not only waiting for him to show them what he wanted to show them, but for Jason to join them.

"Jason," Leona called. "Come here and stop worrying. If someone comes we'll hear the door down the hall open. You need to have some fun."

Jason stretched his shoulder and nodded. "You're right. This is actually pretty exciting." He jogged over to them and sat down in the space they made for him. "So what are you showing us Carson?"

The Riolu smirked and pulled a hardcover book out of his bag. On the top half of the cover was a sun, while on the bottom half was a moon. Both were shining bright, each with a creature hiding in the light emitted from the sun and moon. The one mostly concealed by the sun's light looked like it had four, strong legs, and appeared to have a mane that formed the rays of the sun. It's forehead glowed with a blue light that faintly resembled an eye. The creature in the moon had wings similar to a Noivern but with a sharp edge around them, and circling its head was somewhat of a halo. Similar to the sun creature, its forehead was glowing with the same eye, only it was purple. Written smack in the middle of the cover were the words ' _The Legend of the Sun and Moon_ '.

However, the cover wasn't what caught their attention. It was the red dot on the upper right corner and the red sticker on the spine that said ' _RESTRICTED_ '. The four Eevee and Rockruff had their mouths hanging slightly open with shock written across their faces.

"Did you steal that from the restricted section?" Steph asked, hoping that she didn't already know the answer.

"No, the librarian actually let me check it out," Carson replied sarcastically with a raised eyebrow. "I didn't steal, I borrowed. I'm going to return it when we get back from break next Monday."

"We're not allowed to read those until next year," Liam added worriedly. "We could get in serious trouble for that."

"I took it just as the library closed yesterday, no one knows it's gone, and I'm going to put it back before anyone notices. Besides, if we're not allowed to read them, then why are they in the school library?"

"Because it's a class we take next year!" Steph nearly yelled. "We were told that it's something we need to be taught when we're at the right age and with the right guidance."

"They're really careful about who checks out those books, too." Kai pointed out. "And who even goes in that section."

"That's what bothers me," Carson stated honestly, putting the book down beside him. "The teachers decide what we learn and-"

"It's not the teachers, it's the Representative Council," Jason pointed out. "You know my parents, _your_ parents."

"Most of them are representatives from counties across the kingdom," Liam corrected. "But still."

"Whoever it is. It bothers me how they decide what we can and can't learn. They're controlling what we know about whatever's outside of this kingdom. Liam, you're incredibly smart. What do you know about Earth Kingdom?"

The Eevee with green fur thought for a second before answering, "It's just a few miles north of Auras District, and they mostly farm and mine, which means we get a lot of jewels and berries from them."

There was silence as Carson waited for more. "Is that all you know?"

"That's all I've learned from the books I've read."

"Do you see what I mean?" the Riolu question, trying to help his friends understand. "It's a big kingdom and it's great and I love it. But, if we barely know about the world outside the walls, who knows what's being kept from us."

Leona spoke up for the first time about the topic. "We'll get to know everything eventually because we'll be part of the Representative Council."

"But all the others in this kingdom won't know anything other than what they were taught. And that class that supposedly tells us everything we're allowed to know is controlled, too. The teachers are told what to teach and how to teach it. And when we know the truth, are we expected to lie to everyone because it's what the Representative Council says?"

"Maybe they're trying to protect us?" Leona suggested, though she sounded doubtful of her own words.

"If there's something out there we need protection from, then the best way to do it is to tell us and help us understand and decide for ourselves."

Though it seemed like everyone was against Carson, Jason spoke up and sided with the Riolu. "I think we should read it."

It surprised everyone, even Carson, to hear Jason say that. He was the one who didn't want to come into the school, who didn't want to get caught, who followed the rules. Yet, here he was saying he thought they should break a rule that was emphasized over every other one. Number one rule: don't read the books in the restricted section unless you are of the age and have permission from the proper authority. What Jason said: read the restricted book under allowed age and without permission from authority. When Jason said to read the book, the rest of them rethought their opinions.

Steph sighed, shook her head, and said, "Open the book."

Carson raised an eyebrow and looked to the other three. Leona, Kai, and Liam all exchanged glances, making sure the other was okay with it, and then nodded back to Carson. The fighting type wasn't expecting everyone to agree so quickly, but it must've been Jason who convinced them.

"Do you want me to read it outloud?" Carson asked, only getting quick nods in response. They wanted him to start reading before they changed their minds. He cleared his throat and began, "As Arceus created the guardians to protect the elements of our world, he created two beings: Solgaleo, the Sunne pokemon and guardian of the sun, and Lunala, the Moone pokemon and guardian of the moon. Solgaleo guides the sun and his body will shine with light when he's active. Lunala guides the moon and she absorbs light and glitters like a crescent moon. A long time ago, when ancient tribes roamed the land and before kingdoms came to be, Solgaleo and Lunala protected and aided a certain group of pokemon known as the Terrams, who had come upon struggles in the harsh world. Solgaleo made the days longer to help the plants grow when needed, and Lunala extended the nights to raise the river to bring water to the plants."

"Wow," Leona said sarcastically. "I can see why this is restricted."

"This is probably just an introduction," Liam stated. "Keep reading."

"As kingdoms began to form from these tribes, the Terrams began to have different opinions of how their kingdom should be run. At first, the discussion was civil and nonviolent, but as the years went on, pokemon began to grow fed up with those who disagreed. A wedge separated the Terrams into two kingdoms, and those two kingdoms suffered long years of war and migration to new areas after the old ones were destroy. Due to this migration, new discoveries on the entire species of pokemon changed the dynamics of…" Carson paused as he eyes swept across the page. He couldn't believe what he was reading. "...of evolution. The newly discovered kinds of evolution, thought to be dangerous to the structures of their society, were rejected by other kingdoms. Auras, Oblivion, and Earth Kingdom declared war on the two Terram kingdoms, decimating both territories and their cities and towns. Both Terram kingdoms, refusing to help one another, moved again to a place away from those who had destroyed their home. To this day, the Terram Kingdoms are still aided by Solgaleo and Lunala, and though they have many differences in their society, the two kingdoms attempt to co-exist and aid each other just as pokemon were created to do."

Evolution was a topic they couldn't avoid. The four Eevee instantly demanded to know more, but what interrupted them was the loud creak and slam of a door opening and closing.

"Hey! Who's in here?" the voice yelled. He was still in the hall, which meant he hadn't seen the royals.

Immediately, they bolted, not caring about the noise they made. Carson was the first to get to the back door, despite tripping as he made a double take to grab his backpack and the book. He held the door open for his four-legged friends, and just as he was about to follow them outside, a Bullet Seed cut at his right arm. The quick, sharp pains caused the muscles to tighten, pulling his paw from around the book. Not having time to get it back, he ran, hearing the security guard yell and chase after him.

Luckily, the back door led outside where it was far too dark to recognize a pokemon. Unluckily, they would have to run around a huge section of the school to get back to the fence. If they wanted to get back to where they came in, it would involve more running. But, most of them left their bags back by the hole they crawled through. If someone found their bags, they would know.

Steph ran close to Leona, already forming a plan in her head. "Leona," she whispered through her breaths. She was quick with her commands. "Grab our bags, and get out. Meet at the Breezeway."

The Eevee with red paws nodded and quickly took off in another direction using her Quick Attack. Just as she turned the corner and got out of sight, another security guard joined the first in the chase for the other five of the group. Everyone ran straight for the fence, ignoring the shouts. They're legs swept over the ground, hearts beat fast, and adrenaline rushed through their veins. The sick feeling that they could get caught at any moment was rooted in their stomachs. They wouldn't even know what to do if only one of them got caught. Would the rest of them get away? Would they all stay and get in trouble together?

They all had the same idea to partially split up. Though they each stayed in the line of sight of the security guards, they all went to different parts of the fence, staying in the darkened areas. Each of them scaled the fence pretty quickly, hopped down, and continued running. Steph called for all of them to follow her and led them down several narrow streets without being questioned. No one slowed until they finally came to the Breezeway, the small, empty alley between two neighborhoods.

After a few minutes of catching breaths, Jason managed a few chuckles in his exhales. "I told you we would get in trouble."

"Not in trouble if we don't get caught," Carson pointed out, nearly unable to control his laughter.

They all exchanged glances, silence falling over them, then burst out into laughs. Carson used on arm to lean on the wall for support and wrapped the other around his stomach to make it less painful to laugh. Even Jason was laughing so hard that tears had formed in the corners of his eyes. When Leona finally found them, she was greeted by a roar of laughter and Kai and Liam on the ground looking as if they were dying. She instantly knew what they were laughing about and managed a few chuckles herself.

"You guys are crazy," Leona laughed. "We almost got in serious trouble and you're laughing."

"Like you said, it's the thrill," Steph breathed out with a smile. "And you're laughing too."

As soon as the laughing calmed down, Liam stood up and cleared his throat. "Okay, just so I can go home and not worry, does everyone have everything?"

Leona gave everyone their appropriate bags and they checked for their items. "I'm all good," Kai stated.

"Same here," Liam agreed.

"Uh, guys." Heads turned to the Riolu. They noticed the scratches on his arm. "I feel like I should probably mention I dropped the book when I got hit."

For the second time that night, shocked expressions were written across all their faces. "You. Dropped. The book." Jason restated, processing the words.

"You dropped the book!" Leona nearly shouted. She took a deep breath, calming down, and paced in a circle. "We are in soooo much trouble. It's practically against the law for us to read those books."

"It's not against the law, Leona," Steph corrected.

"It kinda is," Liam nearly shouted, panic dripping in his voice. "The rumor from the last pokemon who got caught reading that book was forced to leave the kingdom."

"Oh this is baaad!" Jason groaned, resting his head against the alley wall. Worry and fear knotted in his stomach.

"It's just a rumor," Liam reassured, mostly to himself. "But, still."

"Okay, okay, guys calm down," Carson insisted, being the only one not panicking. "First, we have all our other stuff and they didn't see us, so they don't know we're the ones who had the book. Second, we shouldn't even be worrying about getting caught. What we should be worrying about is what we read in that book."

Jason forgot about getting caught when Carson reminded him. He opened his eyes and lifted his head from the wall. "Our parents' kingdoms destroyed two other kingdoms."

"The Terrams," Steph echoed. "They were destroyed because of new discoveries in evolution?"

"That can't be the only reason, though, can it?" Liam's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Carson gathered their attention. "Guys, right before the security guard came in, I saw a picture." They all looked at him, their faces telling him to explain more. "It looked a lot like a Ninetales, but it was white. And it didn't even had nine individual tales. It was more like one, huge cloud for a tail."

"That must be one of the new discoveries the book was talking about," Jason inferred, amazed at what he had been told. "Does Vulpix have two evolutions?"

"I don't know," Carson admitted. "But whatever this is, I think our parents are keeping a huge secret. And not just from us, from our entire kingdom."


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

 **Powered Up Vacation**

The four Eevee stood on the top of a large cruise ship, pretending to be distracted by the ocean out before them. They were nervous, nervous to the point where they couldn't talk about anything without Kai and Carson. It had been nearly two days since they snuck into the school and read the restricted book, which meant it was also nearly two days since the whole group had been in the same place. Now they were about to go on their vacation, but none of them thought they would be able to enjoy it.

Six days. Six days of not knowing whether they were in trouble or not. Then, after that, how were they supposed to be around their parents? How were they supposed to be around their parents now? Did their parents even know? That they were unsure of. They loved their parents, but their parents were part of the Representative Council. While their parents only made up a small fraction of the council, they had to know about the war Auras caused a long time ago.

The four cubs waited an hour. They were the first to arrive on the ship, along with their parents and Stephanie's and Jason's grandparents and great uncle. Their grandfather Breo was a Jolteon, grandmother Clariana a Glaceon, great uncle from Breo a Flareon named Leone, whom Leona was named after. Next to arrive was Swipe, a Swellow and former Gemini and guardian of Xerneas's power. Swipe was like the fun uncle who Liam, Leona, Stephanie, and Jason all liked to talk to and battle with, but today they simply said hi, chatted, and went to the railing to wait. Carson came next with his two parents, his Lucario father Luca and Gallade mother Kila, both former Gemini. Carson was quick to drop off his luggage and join his friends, yet they still didn't talk. Kai arrived ten minutes later with Zodia, a Ninetales and former Gemini, and his father, a brown-furred, four-legged Lycanroc.

The group of six were silent for awhile, watching as the ship took off from the port and sailed through the ocean.

"So…" Liam spoke after the sun started setting. "What do we do?"

After a brief moment of silence, Leona replied, "I think we should forget about it. We don't even know if our parents are hiding something or not. That war was a long time ago."

"It talked about evolution," Jason mentioned, just the simple thought confounding him. "And we're all going to evolve soon, whether we have a choice or not."

"I'm with Leona," Carson stated, looking out over the dark blue waters. "We should just enjoy our vacation."

"Yeah," Stephanie agreed. "That book was probably written a long time ago and the reason we have to be a certain age to read it is probably because they don't want us to think the wrong thing. It's-"

"Hold up," Carson interrupted. "I didn't say we should totally disregard the book."

"You think our parents really are controlling what everyone knows?" Kai asked.

"No, no. What I'm saying is we have no idea what really happened, and it doesn't affect us at this moment in time. We should just wait until our vacation is over, try to get our paws on another book, and research a little more."

"The white Ninetales," Leona whispered, trying to imagine it in her head. "If there's different kinds of evolution, we could have so much more to think about."

"Have any of you even heard of Solgaleo or Lunala?" Steph asked, remembering the names being mentioned. "The being of the sun and the being of the moon?"

They simply shook their heads.

…

Tirtouga Beach was their first stop. It was a protected beach for wild Tirtouga babies to play without getting hurt. Thousands visited each day, and with the supervision of the park managers, pokemon could go out and play with the baby Prototurtle pokemon. As long as the rules were followed, everything was fine and everyone had fun.

Since only a few pokemon could go on at a time, the huge family of nineteen decided to split up. A picnic area was reserved for them where half of the family could practice some moves, and the other half would visit the Tirtouga. The process of visiting took a few hours with all the other pokemon there, but everyone would be together by the end of the day to eat dinner and roast marshmallows over a fire. Wanting the six cubs to hang out together, the four Gemini took them to see the Tirtouga first while the other adults conversed and had a few battles with each other.

The sand was soft and kept getting stuck on the pokemon's fur, but that didn't stop them from playing with the baby Tirtouga. All but Liam expected them to be slow, and were surprised after they were exhausted from running to keep up with the water and rock types. When they finally got back to the picnic site, they were quick to get water and a snack while the other adults walked over to the preserved beach.

The real fun began when the four Gemini, some of the most skilled fighters in history, decided to give the six cubs a training session.

Steph and Carson swung their Iron Tails at each other, using the momentum of their moving bodies to keep up the attacks and to dodge and block. Jason and Liam jumped, rolled, and dodged back and forth, creating walls of smoke between colliding Shadow Balls and Swift. Their stances for attacking were perfect. Leona and Kai got in close to deal physical damage with Quick Attack and Fire Fang. With his mom being a Ninetails, Kai had inherited the ability to use Fire Fang.

Steph found herself rapidly swinging her tail, attacking instead of dodging. Carson stumbled to keep up, his breaths heavy, and the Eevee chuckled at him. "Getting tired?"

Just as the words came out of her mouth, Carson planted his foot into the ground, pivoted, and kicked her in the stomach with his other foot while his Iron Tail blocked hers. Steph turned midair and landed on her paws, skidding to a stop.

"Looks like you spoke too soon," Carson smirked.

Ghost energy flooded her veins and fueled a ghastly orb in front of her mouth. The Riolu reacted just as she fired, crossing his arms in front of his chest and face. A clear aura surrounded him, sharply cutting the damage from the Shadow Ball. Again, he used his Endure to block her Tackle, and grabbed her paw while she was still close. He gently placed his other paw on her shoulder, sending a wave of energy through his arm. Before it could escape through his paw, Stephanie formed an electric blue ball and shot it at him. Carson growled and let go, stepping back as static jumped in his muscles.

Unlike his sister, Jason's style of battling was more defensive. Only when there was a safe opening did he switch to offense. Instead of dodging, he distributed his weight evenly amongst his four legs, and took Liam's full weight Tackle head on. In a split second, dark energy poured from his heart and surrounded his teeth with a thin black aura. He clamped his strong jaw down on the other Eevee's shoulder and used his strength to throw Liam behind him. The green furred didn't have as much balance in the air, so he landed on his shoulder. Remembering his lessons with his mom, he used to momentum of the throw to roll back onto his paws.

Jason and Liam paused for a moment, waiting for the other to attack, but their defensive battle styles created a standoff. It wasn't until Luca called for one of them to attack did Liam react. The male Rose twin relied heavily on what his mother had told him when training him. Since he had previous engagements with the drama club, his fighting skills weren't a priority, but he wanted to be better, and was doing very well. Jason, on the other paw, had fun fighting and always spent a few hours of spare time practicing. Had he been more offensive, he would fight very similar to his sister. His skills were nearly the same level as hers.

Liam's energy formed several stars around his body, and just as he jumped to release his Swift, the blue furred Eevee turned and scraped his paws against the ground. The Sand Attack accurately hit Liam in the eyes, causing him to lose control of his stars. He landed back on his paws and rubbed his eyes as the Swift flew in all directions. Jason found an opening and switched to offense. He ran toward Liam as fast as he could, ready to use his full weight and speed for Tackle.

The ground shook slightly as four white and brown paws sped over it. He sensed them from far away, sensed them battling in the same place at the same time, and ran to see. They were growing, becoming stronger. He attempted to dodge trees, but his gold and white mane still brushed the branches. He slowed, not wanting to alert anyone of his presence, and kept his distance, but he saw them. Everything else disappeared, and the power in his heart connected with theirs. He admired their battling, amazed despite the fact that he was far stronger than them. A four pointed blue symbol, what some believed to be his third eye, started to glow amidst the starscape on his forehead. His power was completely available for them to use.

If only they knew.

Steph and Jason's hearts produced a massive amount of energy, acting on their instincts commands. They ran faster than ever before. Their minds were numbed, and they had no idea what they were doing. Steph coated her tail in iron, but now it was surrounded by an orange red aura. Jason's Tackle began to look similar to a Take Down with the same aura spiraling around him. Their moves were becoming way too strong for Carson and Liam to take. The two Eevee twins got closer, about to deal a serious amount of damage.

Swipe cawed to his fellow Gemini and swooped down from the sky. His talons picked up the green furred Eevee and his wings pulled them both back up. Luca, who had received the call, used a nearby tree to increase his speed. He pushed off the sturdy bark and grabbed his son just in time to pull Carson out of the way. What they failed to realize is that Steph and Jason were now aimed at each other.

An enhanced Iron Tail collided with an enhanced Tackle, creating a massive, swirling cloud of smoke that enveloped both Jason and Stephanie. The sound echoed through the air, and immediately, the being with a starscape forehead was snapped out of his trance. He used his connection with the two Eevee to check them, and they were fine, of course. After stealing one last glance at the pokemon he ran so far to see battling, he began his journey back home. No one knew he had ever been there.

The Swellow cleared the smoke by flapping his wings, and Kila and Zodia rushed to them. Both Eevee were lying on the ground, seemingly unconscious, and everyone became extremely worried and scared. The ground had large cuts in it from where Jason and Steph collided, revealing the intensity of the moves.

Zodi gently nudged Steph. "Ow," the pink furred Eevee moaned. Jason's Tackle hit her right on the top of the shoulder and around the area. Her left jawbone throbbed as much her front left leg.

"You okay, Steph?" Jason asked weakly, licking his lips. He wanted water.

"No," she chuckled as she attempted to stand. "You?"

"Awful."

"I think we're done battling for the day," Zodia chimed with a voice full of concern, helping the two Eevee to stand up. She noticed the cuts and already forming bruises from where they were hit. "You parents are going to kill us."

"It wasn't your fault," Jason defended. "We just got a little too intense."

Stephanie glanced at her twin brother, mentally asking him a question. He replied with a nod, and both of their faces became plastered with worry. They had both gotten the same feeling of their hearts overflowing with power, power that wasn't the same as their own.

Queen Abrielle and King Cyle were, in fact, very concerned when they arrived back at the picnic area to find their son and daughter completely bruised and being bandages by Kila. However, remembering how rough she was when she was young, Abrielle was able to calm down her husband. The only thing that evaded them was how their cubs managed to muster enough power to harm each other with such intensity.

It was no surprise that when dinner was served, Jason and Steph were the first to get their plates and sit down. Everyone naturally chose groups to sit in. King Cyle, his parents and uncle, Kai's dad, and King Arron all sat together. The six cubs sat with both queens and thier grandfather and great uncle, and the four Gemini took the first opportunity they got to sit and chat. Since getting married and having cubs, they rarely got the chance to get together and talk.

Jason was eating quietly, listening to the conversation, when he saw his mother smile genuinely. He paused and focused his attention to where Abrielle was looking, seeing the four Gemini laughing with each other.

"Mom?" Jason called softly. "What are you looking at?"

The mother Umbreon smiled at her cub. "I'm just remembering."

"I remember our fight," Cynthia added with a chuckle. "What was I thinking?"

"You weren't thinking, remember?"

The Vaporeon laughed. "You're lucky it's been long enough for you to make that joke."

"Wait, what?" Leona was confused by their inside jokes. "What are you talking about, Mom?"

"Just something that happened when we were your age," Cynthia stated. "The battle between life and death?"

"You've never told us a lot about it," Steph recalled. "Or Zen. Well until last week."

"The whole thing just confuses me." Carson took a bite of his sandwich, seemingly unbothered by it. "Something about the Crystal Minds and Xerneas and Yveltal."

"Haven't you learned this is school?" the Eevee's grandfather asked, starting to question the education system in Equilibrium.

"Yeah," Liam sighed, "but no more than the basics. Mom is Yveltal's descendent, Aunt Abrielle is Xerneas's descendant, and they were able to stop the fight without harming anyone. All the details you gave us seem so scattered."

"Well I can start from the beginning if you'd like," Leone, Cyle's uncle, offered. "Because what you know is not all there is to it."

Kai immediately dropped his sandwich and his tail wagged. "Now you're talking!" He was excited to hear the deeper version of the story, one with this Zen pokemon he never seemed to hear about.

Leone cleared his throat. "When Zen and I were cubs, we used to argue all the time, but we still loved each other. But, after I found out he had no plans to get rid of the evolution test when he became king, we grew apart, and even more so after we evolved. This was back when we had to evolve into what the evolution test said we would be strongest as, and I thought anything other than a Jolteon or Umbreon was horrible."

Leona's heart twisted. If she evolved into a Flareon, would she grow apart from her brother? From her family?

"Then, one day, when Oblivion Kingdom came for a meeting with Auras," Leone continued, "I met the princess and future queen."

"Lidia?" Liam guessed. He barely remembered her. His history books only mentioned her one or two times.

"Yes." The Flareon smiled at the ground, wanting to cry. He missed her. "To see her and get away from everyone at home, I visited Oblivion Kingdom a lot, and soon I stopped coming home. Eventually, I married Lidia and-"

"Whoa, what?!" Carson nearly choked on his food. "I did _not_ know that."

"So, while I was living in Oblivion, I found these red diamonds and your mother's Crysti." Leone gestured to Kai, and the Rockruff's ears shot up. "After some research I learned that they were connected to Yveltal's powers, and I called them the Crystal Minds. If one came in contact with the Crysti connected to Xerneas's power, it became corrupted. But, being around the Crystal Minds for so long affected my mind, and I couldn't think straight."

Steph and Jason's grandfather, Breo, continued the story. "Leone came home to visit one day, but all he did was stay in the library and research. So, Zen and I decided to follow him in there, and we saw a bunch of drawings of Yveltal and possibilities of where he could be."

"I hid the Crystal Minds and left my research at Oblivion," Leone stated. "I thought Breo and Zen were close to finding it, so I made a last attempt to find Yveltal."

Breo's voice had gradually become serious. "Zen and I followed him that day and we figured out what he was doing. Zen confronted him, Leone attacked, and all I remember is seeing Leone dead."

Silence fell over everyone. Abrielle and Cynthia would've normally kept Breo from saying that part, but their cubs were old enough now. They deserved to know the story of their family.

"When Lidia found out, she was angry, and all she wanted was revenge on Zen, but it took years before she could do anything." Abrielle told this part of the story, knowing Leone and Breo didn't quite understand Lidia's view.

Breo cleared his throat, blinked his pure blue eyes a few times to keep from crying, and continued, "Everything started to shift back to the normal way of life. I married Clariana and your father was born," Breo nodded to Stephanie and Jason, "and Zen was chosen to guard the Future Orb."

"Now I want to know what that is," Carson pointed out. "Keep hearing about it but I never know what it is."

"The Future Orb was an orb created by Xerneas," Breo explained. "It was her way of communicating with us, and each generation she chose a pokemon to interpret the messages from the orb. My mother was chosen, and then Zen, which is why I became king even though he was the oldest. Xerneas aided Zen in finding the Gemini, the guardians of her power, and the Crysti, which would help them access her power. He knew them when they were even younger than you, and trained them to use their powers."

The six cubs looked at the Lucario, Swellow, Gallade, and Ninetales, amazed. They all laughed at a joke one of them told. The cubs wondered what the Gemini were like when they were younger.

Abrielle picked up the story. "Lidia was still trying to get her revenge, and she found that Yveltal's descendant would be born in a set of twins in either the Umbreon Tribe or Espeon Tribe between the kingdoms. When my sister and I were born, we were separated from both each other and our parents. Lidia took her, and I was left in a forest outside a random village in Auras."

"Then, after a few years, I came along," Cynthia continued on in a somewhat sinister manner. "I got the royal family to take me in, and I spied on them for nearly a year."

"I wonder if I got those skills," Leona joked, getting a nudge from her brother.

"And Zen hated me," Abrielle mentioned with a laugh.

Breo laughed at the memory of his brother. "It's because you were so much like Leone."

"But you were the Wild One." Jason furrowed his eyebrows. "He had to train you."

"He was what was holding me back from using my full powers." Abrielle took a deep breath. "On the outside, Zen didn't seem to believe that I could defeat Cynthia, but he had trained the other Gemini. I started to think that if he didn't believe I could win the fight between life and death, then maybe I couldn't."

Cynthia shook her head at her sister. "Lidia had gotten all the Crysti, included the Wild One Crysti, corrupted them, and had awaken Yveltal. I was angry and losing myself to Yveltal's power because Lidia had me convinced I was her daughter and that Zen killed Leone, so I wanted revenge. It was me, Yveltal, and the Crysti who had taken on their own forms using Yveltal's power against her unpowered team and Xerneas. But she still went in anyway, and nearly died."

Steph felt inspired by her mother's story. She wanted to be strong like Abrielle was and still is. She wanted to be strong like her mother.

"Yveltal hit me with his Oblivion Wing, and I thought for sure I was going to die. But, since I was Xerneas's descendant, her power protected me." Abrielle smiled at the memories. "At that point, Xerneas knew I still couldn't use my powers, so she sent me to the place Zen had thought he killed Leone."

"But Xerneas had been keeping me alive," Leone added in. "And Abrielle woke me up, and I explained to her that deep in his heart, Zen really did believe in her."

"So, I used my powers, and we started winning the fight. Leone unveiled that Cynthia was not his daughter, and when he went to Zen, Zen ran away."

"What happened to Lidia?" Liam asked.

Leone looked at the ground sadly. "Yveltal's Oblivion Wing got her, and she didn't make it."

"She was only doing what she did because she was hurting," Abrielle explained. "But you should've seen the look on her face when she saw her husband again. She was so happy."

The six cubs exchanged glances, small smiles on their faces. No one did bad things without a reason, and they were glad to have heard the story.

"What about you and Zen, Mom?" Steph inquired.

"I was able to say goodbye to him before he left. The guilt of everything that happened drove him to run away."

"It makes more sense now," Jason stated. "Dad's upset with Zen because Zen lied about Leone. Do you know if Zen's alive?"

"I don't know," Breo sighed. "I miss him though."

"As do I," Leone added. "And I'm sure your father does too."

…

The next stop: Magikarp Island, just a mile off the west coast Equilibrium. The rivers, lakes, and forest on the small island were filled with wild pokemon, pokemon that had never developed beyond their simple, primeval instincts. They didn't speak, traveled in packs, and hunted other pokemon for food. Outside the kingdoms, there were many pokemon like that. There were often same species of pokemon who were completely different. Just outside Equilibrium was a wild pack of Persian, but inside the walls were sophisticated, talking Persian.

What made Magikarp Island special were the rivers and lakes full of the shiny water type pokemon. At night, the moonlight made them shine as they swam through the water. Along with that, the royal family would be able to see the fireworks on the mainland from the island.

The sun had set. The Kricketune played their songs in the coverage of the trees while the royal family sat on the edge of the lake, waiting for the moon to rise high enough. The Magikarp were already shining, even without the light of the moon.

Leone shook her entire body rapidly, water flying off her fur, and rolled herself in her warm towel. Her brother simply chuckled at her and laid down beside her, not bothering to dry himself off from the swim in the lake. The twins sat and stared at the stars, listening to the song from the forest pokemon. Their bodies and minds relaxed, and their souls were lightened. Something felt different about being here, connecting with nature. They heard the wind blow, felt the grass under their paws, and the moonlight felt like it entered their hearts.

She was still far away, but she knew they felt her power. Her starscape forehead shone as her cresent wings cut through the air. The blue light in her chest, protected by her ribcage torso, shone brightly. He had told her he saw his descendants, and now was her turn to see her own descendants.

"Leona?" Liam whispered.

"Yeah?" the red Eevee whispered back, not taking her eyes off the stars.

"I remember something about a cave being on this island."

That got his sister's attention. "Should we get the others and go check it out."

"I was thinking just you and me."

"But we always hang out them?"

"And we can hang out with them any other time," Liam explained. "Let's just do something together. Just the two of us."

Leona jokingly pushed her brother. "Okay, you sentimental normal type."

He smiled happily. "How about after everyone goes to sleep?"

She gave him a surprised look. "Did that night at the school give you an addiction to breaking the rules?" Leona knew that Liam was aware of and usually followed the rules.

"Hey, Jason's the one who strictly follows the rules. I was up for going into the school."

"True," she agreed with a nod of her head.

"Leona, Liam!" their mother called. "Look!"

The twin Eevee stood up and went to the edge of the lake. Gradually, the moon's light was shining through the surface of the water and reflecting off the yellow scales of the Magikarp. The Fish pokemon swam around rapidly, throwing golden rays in every direction with their movement. The water had become a golden lake, the color reflecting in the eyes of the royals watching it.

A crack echoed through the air, immediately scaring away the Kricketune and the cubs looked up with eyes of wonder. They caught the fading tails of the first firework, and watched another shoot up into the air with a trail of sparkling green. For a split second, the light disappeared, but the air suddenly exploded with blue and green, and a crack followed a moment later.

The fireworks show combined with the glimmering gold light of the shiny Magikarp lit up the night. Pokemon from the mainland could see a yellow glow shining up from the small island. The fireworks lasted for one exciting hour, and the gold glow disappeared as the Magikarp hid in their dens at the lake's bottom to sleep. Eventually, everyone else fell asleep in their sleeping bags, soothed by the sounds of nature.

That is, except for Leona and Liam.

They weren't known for getting themselves into trouble, which is why their parents trusted them and usually let them go wherever whenever. The cubs were responsible and didn't need hovering parents, as long as they informed their parents of their whereabouts, which is exactly what they weren't doing now. Sure, they were staying on the island, and there wasn't much space to get lost in, but they still didn't have permission to leave their family. If they had gotten permission, everyone else would've wanted to come, and then Leona and Liam wouldn't get to spend time with just each other.

"So," Leona began, not-so-subtly, quickly alerting her brother to her question, "evolution?"

"You know what I want," Liam repeated for what must've been the one-hundredth time. "Jolteon or Umbreon, like Dad or Uncle Cyle."

"And if you get something else?"

He thought for a minute. "I'm not really sure."

"So if you do get a Leafeon?"

This time, he didn't answer.

Leona, however, was curious about her brother's silence. "What _did_ you really think when Carson said Leafeon?"

"Confused." The thoughts he had a from a few days ago came back. His sister didn't have to ask to get him to explain. "I mean, why a Leafeon? I hadn't even thought about it before."

"Because a Leafeon is calm, graceful, and helpful." She described both a Leafeon and her brother without needing even a moment to think about it. "You're so calm and graceful on stage. No one can even recognize you when you're playing a part. And you will help _anyone_ who asks. I think you spend more time helping other pokemon with their homework than you do your own."

Liam shook his head. "I don't even like being outside and I hate sunny days. Pokemon probably think Leafeon because I have green fur." He hit the back of his ear, making it swing forward and sway back to its upright position. "What about you?"

"What?"

"What did you think of Flareon?"

Leona growled deeply. "It's stupid."

This surprised Liam. Leona was never one to accuse emotions of being unimportant or idiotic. "Whoa, sis."

"Mom already named me after Leone, but we're not really related to him."

"Hey, Leone's family. Family doesn't-"

"I know, I know," Leona interrupted with a sigh. "Family doesn't have to be related, and I love him a lot. But he's our aunt's husband's uncle. We're not blood related, so I don't know why Mom insisted that I be named after him. Literally only one letter was changed."

Liam used his reasoning skills in attempt to make his sister feel better. "Well Mom lived with Lidia for a long time, and she thought Leone was her dad, so she probably knew a lot about him and felt close to him."

She nodded, seemingly starting to understand.

"So, she probably named you Leona because she wanted to feel close to you, too."

"Well when you explain it, it makes sense." Leona laughed and leaned against her brother. "Thanks."

"It's what I'm here for." He hugged his sister, and they returned to their walking, not knowing they were being followed. "So do you really not want to evolve into Flareon?"

She shook her head. "No." It wasn't the entire truth.

"Why? I think a Flareon suites you. You're passionate about everything you do, and you're up for anything. Plus, a fire type-"

"Shh!" Leona shushed. She stopped abruptly, pulling Liam to a halt as well. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Did you hear that?"

"What?"

The branches rustled. "That." Leona looked to her left, forming a Shadow Ball in front of her mouth.

She flew faster, the small island in sight. Her purple wings cut through the air, but all that came was silence. She could sense they were in danger and needed her power, but were they ready? They were so confused about their evolution that lending them her power seemed like a little too much. But, if they didn't…

A red glint came from within the trees. More red gems followed. As the gems got closer, Liam and Leona could make out the shapes of four-legged pokemon. Their brown bodies, sharp claws, and red and yellow manes coming from the tops of their heads became clear. The female Pyroar pack growled, slowly approaching the prince and princess.

Liam and Leona launched their moves. Liam used his Swift to hit multiple targets while Leona used her Shadow Ball to kick up some dirt. After blinding them, she pulled the power from her heart and surrounded herself with a white aura. She charged with a Quick Attack, tackling them with as much force as she could. After each tackle, she pushed off and ran to the next with the same speed while Liam covered her with his golden stars.

Suddenly, a stray Pyroar jumped and slashed Liam's back with its sharp claws. The Eevee lost control of his Swift and rolled uncontrollably over the dirt path. A randomly shot star hit Leona's leg and threw off her balance, giving a Pyroar the opportunity to smack her away. The claws dug deep into her shoulder, leaving bloodsoaked cuts, and she flew right into her brother, who had the same marks on his back. The pack of eight surrounded them as they shakily stood, still ready to attack.

She felt the fear in their hearts, and instantly made a decision. They may not have been ready to use her power, but they were in danger. She twirled high into the air, spotting the two Eevee below on the island, and flew directly in front of the moon, blocking its light out. She expanded her wings out and in a complete circle in front of the moon, glowing with a bright luminescent light, and opened her power source to them just as the Pyroar leapt at them.

Suddenly, Leona and Liam felt a rush of power. The Pyroar seemed to slow down in mid air, and power flowed through their veins at an immense rate. Leona let steel power surround her tail, and not only did it become coated in iron but also lit up with a glowing white aura, completely powered up. Liam's Swift formed in an instant, becoming surrounded by the same white aura.

From the air, where her power shone down on them like the moon, she watched them attack their attackers. They became very powerful within a few seconds of her lending them her power. She let her body go dark and limp, cutting off her power, and fell through the air. She caught herself when she was no longer blocking the moon, just in time to see Leona and Liam fight off the last of the Pyroar. A few seconds later, a few members of their family came rushing to their sides.

Now that her descendants were safe and she had a chance to see them, she began her journey back home.


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! Another chapter right here for you! I feel like this one is the best so far. A special thank you goes to FlareAeon who has given me tons of great advise that has really helped my story writing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

 **Unexpected Results**

Hearts beat fast and hard, threatening to jump out of place, claws scratched the tile floor, and a nervous quiet fell over the Eevee. They sat on the chairs just behind a white wooden door, waiting to be called in.

Today was the day. Today was their test. Figuring out what they would be strongest as. They didn't know what to expect when they went in. They only thing they had heard were the stories from their parents. Despite the major technological advances from their parents' time, this was one of the only things that did not change.

Most of them breathed through their half open mouths, too nervous for their bodies to remember to breathe through their noses. Steph was the only one who remained totally calm...on the outside.

On the inside, she was feeling confused. What did she want to become? _I was fine a week ago, so why do I care now?_ she thought. _I was going to choose whatever the test said._ One question remained in the back of her mind: _What does Leonardo think I'm going to be?_

To her, Leonardo seemed so strong and confident in who he was, and Steph was too. She loved being herself and thought any evolution would be the best. Was it Leo's confidence that was throwing her slightly off?

What threw her off even more was the fact that Leo was here right now, approaching them with his confident walk. "Hey guys," he greeted casually with a friendly smile. "You ready?"

All of them simply responded with grimacing faces.

The shiny Eevee laughed. "Don't worry about it."

"Are you not worried?" Liam asked with a surprised face.

"Nope. I mean, it might be because I'm not going to evolve today, but it's just a test. A simple test doesn't decide your future. You do."

"What are you thinking about choosing?" Steph inquired, thinking maybe his opinion would help.

"Well…" He paused for a couple seconds, knowing he wasn't going to tell them one of his options. "...I've considered all of them but I think I've narrowed it down to Sylveon, Glaceon, and Vaporeon."

"Those would be some unique colors when you evolve," Jason pointed out with an entertained smile.

"One can only hope," Leo joked. Despite his effort to lighten the mood, he could tell that none of them felt any better. "Don't worry about it, guys. Whatever happens is up to you."

With only one test room, the five Eevee had to take turns, but the process still went the same. Jason went first, walking into the dimly lit room. In the center was a glowing, circular, multicolored panel. Connected to the panels were wires, and those were plugged into a few machines near the back wall. Several scanners, built like a robotic arm were attached to the ceiling. He was unsure of what most of the devices were.

The Meowstic cleared her throat. "Step onto the panel."

Jason nodded and quietly complied. As soon as he stepped onto the circular pad, it lit up blue. The Meowstic typed several things onto her keyboard, and the robotic arm moved in response. It startled the Eevee when it started circling around him, making all sorts of buzzing and clicking noises. When told to stay perfectly still, he did so, but the noises still bothered his ears. The arm tilted up and down, emitting a blue light, and scanned his body.

After the machine was done collecting data, he was shooed off the panel and the device on the ceiling fired up. It projected blue lights down, creating a 3-D model of an Eevee. He looked at it in wonder, but his attention was quickly drawn to the eight floating symbols around the Eevee, one for each of the evolutions he could become.

"If you touch one of the symbols, it'll show you how strong you'll be as that evolution."

Jason's eye caught sight of the water droplet symbol. Vaporeon was his rumored evolution, and though he felt like it wasn't for him, he decided to see what the test said about him evolving into the water type.

When Stephanie had to glance through the evolution choices, she also chose her rumored evolution: a Sylveon. Seeing as it would massively increase her strength, it seemed like a good fit, but she still had seven more to look at.

Leona dreaded the fire symbol that floated in front of her face, but she had to see just how it would affect her. _Flareons are beautiful_ she reminded herself. _I think they're great and strong and probably the strongest. Why do I care if I'm more like Leone?_

Liam, like his sister and cousins, wanted to see his rumored evolution first. A Leafeon was something he almost never thought of as his evolution. Sure, it was cool, but it didn't feel like him.

Leonardo knew he shouldn't have, but he did. He was desperately trying to forget those times and learn to live in his new life, but his culture and heritage was apart of him. _I have to know how much of the Wild One is in me._

After all of the results were presented to the Eevee, they were each told their strongest evolution and asked to make a decision. Leonardo, without much thought, simply said that he wasn't going to be evolving.

As for the royals, their original plan was to evolve today. They told all their friends, including Carson and Kai. On Monday, everyone was going to be expecting four new Eeveelutions to walk into school. Now, though, they were so shocked by their strongest evolution.

None of them chose to evolve.

…

Stephanie, Jason, Leona, and Liam didn't want to go back to school. It wasn't because they had to wake up early, or that they had a test, or even because they didn't want break to end. The knowledge of their strongest evolution hit them hard, really hard. None of them were really expecting what they got, and at dinner that night none of them said a word, not even when their parents asked.

Stephanie, being the only one who wasn't concerned with her test results, was confused. Sure, she was still unsure of what to do. She wanted to evolve, to become what made her the strongest. She believed that an Eevee needed to be strong because an Eevee is the only one with eight evolutions. But, her brother and cousins were hit harder by their results. She chose not to evolve that weekend, trying to show that she related to her family, but she didn't. Sure, she was nervous before taking the test, but after it didn't seem like such a big deal.

The royals knew what to expect at school. They knew what everyone else expected. Students, probably more than usual, would be waiting in the main hallway where the royal Eevee came in everyday. They would be waiting for the royal Eevee, who would be expected to not be Eevee anymore, and cheer when they saw the newly evolved pokemon.

No one cheered when the blue eyed Eevee walked through the door, alone. She simply pretended not to notice their stares and whispers as she walked by, but she knew what they were thinking. Why hadn't she evolved? Why was she walking to school alone? Where were Liam, Leona, and Jason? The royal Eevee were always together.

Stephanie noticed that she and her brother and cousins had drifted away from each other after the evolution test. She needed time to think, and they needed time to think. Eventually, they would come back together and talk about it. It's what they always did, but she was unsure if they wanted to go to their parents or not.

Everyone was still uncertain about what their parents were hiding, if they were hiding something. Carson had made a plan with them after school to go looking for another book, but with the way everyone felt right now, Stephanie was unsure if the plans were still in action.

"Hey Steph!"

The Eevee turned her head and stopped when she saw another, white furred Eevee jogging to her. "Hey Leo."

"I see you didn't evolve," he stated. "Why? What did you get?"

She gave him a little "it's complicated" look while forcing a few ums.

Leo nodded in understanding. "Sorry, but hey. I got Descending, if that makes you feel any better. I have a huge decision to make, but-oh you didn't get Descending, too, did you? I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"No, no, you're fine. I didn't get Descending." Steph smiled to reassure him. "I got one result, but I don't know what the others got. They're completely shut down and freaking out, but I just..."

"Don't feel the same?" Leo shot her a half-smile, and her awkward smile told him he was right. "Is that why they aren't with you?"

"Yeah. I think they're too distracted to come to school, so I just left without them, but don't worry. We'll probably talk about it tonight."

"That's good." The ring of the bell interrupted Leonardo. He waited until it stopped before continuing. "Before I go, remember: just because the test told you that evolution would be your strongest, doesn't mean that's who you're meant to be. All it's doing is telling you which makes you the strongest after evolution, but not how hard you train after evolving."

He smiled, and followed the line of traffic out of her sight.

She didn't see Jason until her third class, which meant he probably skipped first and second period, but she was unsure when Leona and Liam came because the first class she had with them was fifth period. They seemed absent-minded during the entire class. When called on, they both claimed to not be on the right page, and the teacher nearly gave them both a detention.

At lunch, Carson was the first at the table. Then, Kai and Steph. The other three Eevee moved like Slakoth, and didn't even join the conversation. They simply sat down and ate, until Carson forced them into the conversation.

"Alright, all of you, talk to me. You four are being way too quiet and it's annoying me. What happened with your evolution test?"

"I got Sylveon," Stephanie bravely stated as she bit into her sandwich. She wasn't ashamed or disappointed in her result. It was her strongest option, and she wanted to be strong.

The other three Eevee immediately looked up from their plates and smiled excitedly at Steph. "Really?" Leona asked, her tail swishing slightly back and forth.

"That's what you wanted, right?" Liam had the same light in his eyes as his sister and the same amazed smile.

Her answer was quick, and seemed somewhat critical of his question, though she didn't mean for it to be. "Nope."

Jason tilted his head in confusion. "But, you said you'd love Sylveon."

"I would absolutely love to be a Sylveon, or a Vaporeon, or a Glaceon. I wanted any evolution because it doesn't matter."

Liam looked disappointingly back at his plate. "You always say that."

"But you never listen." Steph words were starting to mean something. "I was worried about my evolution for the first time last week, but not because it was a huge decision to make. It was because of you guys. You're worrying made me nervous when I had no reason to be."

"This is getting good," the Rockruff whispered to Carson, only getting an elbow in the ribs in return.

"I'll be the one to tell you that I was going to choose whatever made me strongest, and I probably still will. But, just because Sylveon is my strongest evolution, doesn't mean that it always will be. If I evolve into a Vaporeon and train as hard as I can, a Sylveon might not even compare. It's just a test. It doesn't say anything about me, and it can't determine my future. What you evolve into should be who you feel."

"It's kinda hard when we can't try out each one," Leona stated. "But I see what you mean."

"Well, you know me and Carson don't get a choice, which kinda sucks for us." Kai shrugged as he glanced between the four Eevee. "It's not exactly easy on our side either."

"Everyone's got their problems," Carson stated. He placed his paws dramatically on the table and switched topics. "What we can all relate to-"

A loud, three part ring sounded through the cafeteria, interrupting the Riolu and causing everyone in the cafeteria to pause. There were a few moments of silence, the sound of someone clearing their throat, and then a female voice, "Attention all students. Recently, several students were caught in the natatorium with a restricted book."

A few shocked whispers and glances around the room were noted by the guilty pokemon.

"I should not need to remind you that restricted books are not allowed to be read without proper age or approval. Should any of you know who these students are, you are expected to report to the front office immediately, and to the students who broke the rules, if you confess, your punishment will be less severe than if you are caught."

As soon as a _click_ ended the announcement, everyone burst back into loud chatter. That is, everyone except the ones who caused the announcement.

Leona covered her eyes in disbelief. "I totally forgot about that."

"What are we gonna do?" Jason asked everyone, starting to panic a little. "You heard her! If we get caught there are serious consequences."

"Well we can't go turn ourselves in!" Liam snapped in a hushed voice. "We're supposed to be on our best behavior twenty-four seven. If they find out-"

"I'm really starting to regret listening to you Carson," Stephanie sighed, scratching her claws against the bench.

Meanwhile, the Riolu simply chuckled in disbelief. "They're scared."

"Haha, sorry, what?!" Kai half-chuckled, half-whimpered.

"C'mon guys. Even you know that was a desperate attempt to try to find the pokemon who read the book."

"And that means they're scared how?" Steph questioned, her voice filled with doubt.

"They're scared that we know what they don't want us to know," Carson pointed out, his eyes widening. " We read that book and they think we know something they haven't given the _proper guidance_ for." He put air quotes around his words. "And by proper guidance you should know I mean they're lying to us and telling us what to think."

"I don't think they're lying to us," Steph voiced.

"Well they're at least keeping something from us," Kai stated. "And it's really not fair. These new evolutionary discoveries could not only help you guys, but maybe me and Carson too."

"Wouldn't they tell us, though?" Liam inquired. "Evolution is super important in Equilibrium, so wouldn't they want everyone to know about these supposed new kinds of evolution?"

"You're right on that," Carson admitted with a nod of his head. "Like I said, I think we need to get our paws on another copy and figure out more before we can make a decision. So are we still up for looking after school today?"

The bell signaled the end of lunch. The six pokemon looked around to see everyone moving out of their seats, and then peered back at each other. Carson was clearly interested in getting another book. The Rockruff and Eevee exchanged unsure glances, and when four of them got the same idea, they looked to Jason. He nodded to them, and in turn they agreed to Carson's plan. Carson and Kai left first with their class being the farthest away, while the Eevee all headed toward Mrs. Sandomir's classroom.

"Did you remember to study for the test?" Liam asked.

Fear sunk into Leona's chest and her eyes widened as she realized, "I completely forgot."

…

"I took the L on that test," Leona sighed. She was at the point to where she was so stressed that she was calm.

"Quit complaining. You should've studied." Steph looked aimlessly through the books, searching for a right title. "Carson I hope you know where we are."

"I do," he said tiredly. "Have you found the book yet?"

Jason coughed as a cloud of dust rushed at his face when he pulled a book out. He squinted through the cloud, checked the title, and sighed. "Nothing."

As soon as they were dismissed, the group followed Carson all the way to the west side of Geomancy City. None of them knew the terrain very well, a result of staying close to home most of the time, and so everyone was on their toes, except the Riolu. He had been looking around all weekend, finding multiple books stores that looked completely abandoned. Right now, they were in the trading market in the least populated part of Downtown Geomancy. The bookstore was dusty and falling apart.

"I think we should get going soon," Steph stated. "We've been looking for hours and none of the other stores had the book. I don't even think it's safe to be here."

"We have to keep looking." Carson spoke absent-mindedly. He dug through shelves and crates full of books, carefully reading the titles. He seemed so focused on the task at paw.

Liam cleared his throat. "Not that we don't care, Carson, but why are you stressing out over this?"

"They're lying to us!" The Riolu paused and exhaled, attempting to calm himself down. He sat down, staring at the floor. "Our parents, our Representative Council, could be lying to the entire kingdom about evolution, and it's not fair."

Steph's eyes softened and she sat beside her friend. "I didn't realize you were so determined to prove that we're being lied to. They might just be lying to protect us."

He shook his head. "Your great uncle Zen lied to your dad about Leone. He lied to his own family and kingdom, and look where he is now."

"Does it really bother you that much?" Leona asked, not accusingly, but meaningfully.

He met her brown eyes with thoughtful ones. "Of course. Family is everything. You shouldn't lie your family members, and if our parents are lying to us-"

The owner of the store, a female Persian, walked through the door that led to the backroom. She smiled what Carson thought to be a smile of greeting, but the Riolu felt something off about her. Almost immediately after she spoke, Carson felt another presence nearby as the appendages on his ears rose.

"May I help you find anything?" the Persian asked with a friendly smile. She quickly recognized the trademark blue eyes in two of the Eevee, and could only assume that the other Eevee, the Riolu, and the Rockruff were the other royals.

Steph stole a quick glance at Carson, but made a decision herself and stood up. "Hi, we were looking for a book called The Legend of the Sun and Moon. Do you maybe have it somewhere?"

Only Carson saw the small shift in the Persian's expression and voice. It became more threatening. "You know, I'm only allowed to sell that book to pokemon of proper age."

The Riolu knew something was wrong and reacted on that feeling quickly. "It's fine. We were just looking for a friend. We should really get going."

He attempted to lead everyone out by pulling Kai's shoulder and gesturing for the Eevee to leave. However, the Rockruff, not understanding Carson's need to leave, pulled his shoulder back, gave him a confused look, and whispered. "I thought you wanted to find this book?"

They missed their opportunity to leave as the Persian slid in front of the door, blocking the way out. Light reflected menacingly off the jewel on her forehead. "And I know for certain that you six are not old enough to be reading a book like that."

Carson changed from flight mode to fight mode. He grit his teeth and bared a fang, looking angrily at the large normal type. "Then you probably also know how important we are, and if you don't let us leave now, you're going to have a lot of problems."

"Oh, really?" She stalked closer to him, lowering her head and spreading her claws.

He remained close to his friends, who had also begun to grow suspicious of the situation. "And in case you haven't noticed your luck, it's six against one."

"Actually, with the most important pokemon in the kingdom walking down the same road as I, I'd say my luck is excellent."

A gang of pokemon all rushed from the back room, surrounding the royals. All of them immediately felt the gravity of the situation. Someone wanted to hurt them. Being targeted because of their royalty was something they weren't used to. It occurred to them that not everyone in Equilibrium was happy with the rule, and the best way to get control over the kingdom was to take something important to the rulers.

Steph's instincts kicked in. She pushed past Carson and body slammed the Persian with a Tackle. The Persian took the hit hard, falling back into the door. The other pokemon in the room were about to attack, but the Persian signalled them to stand down. She looked back toward the small pokemon, who was now in the perfect attacking stance with bared teeth, and laughed.

"You're outnumbered little cub," the Classy Cat pokemon stated. "I suggest you come with us quietly to avoid injuring yourself."

Steph was about to attack again, when Jason held her back. "Steph, what are you doing?" He asked what everyone was thinking.

Unlike them, she reacted on fear by facing it. Jason was calm on the outside, but on the inside he was shutting down. He thought that listening to them would ensure that nobody got hurt, especially since that's what they were taught in school, but that didn't stop him from shaking with fear. Leona's eyes were filling with water, but she didn't dare let herself cry. Kai and Liam were too shocked by the situation to do anything other than watch. Carson was willing to attack if they tried to hurt his friends, but other than that he waited for an opportunity to get at least one of them out of there.

Stephanie immediately pulled out of her brothers grip, charged her electric type Hidden Power in half a second, and fired it at the Persian, who dodged with ease. The sparkling orb smashed through the window, causing a shattering noise to vibrate through the air and catch the attention of a passing pokemon. The Persian retaliated, too fast for Steph to even realize what was happening, and slashed her across the face. The Eevee flew across the room, her back and head smacking against a bookshelf, and she flopped to the floor, unconscious.

Carson's pupils shrank in rage, and he growled ferociously at the Persian. As soon as he leapt forward with his tail of iron, the other pokemon surrounding the royals jumped into action. They were able to restrain Jason, Leona, Liam, and Kai without much fight, leaving the Classy Cat with the Riolu. He swung his body around, aiming the Iron Tail at the Persian's head. She, however, was much stronger and faster than he was, and simply caught his tail with her teeth. Then, to make sure he would keep fighting, she slammed him against the ground, quickly picked him back up, and whipped him against a bookshelf.

The four pokemon who hadn't fought back watched as Carson slumped to the ground. Immediately, the reality of the situation sunk in deeper as they watched the pokemon tie his paws behind his back and snap a metal collar around his neck. He was picked up carelessly and brought to the back room of the store. The five quadruped pokemon had their front paws tied together, back paws tied together, and metal collars put on their necks.

Leona spotted someone outside and screeched, "HELP!"

The pokemon carrying her slammed her against the ground, held her mouth shut while another brought him a small vile, and forced Leona to drink the purple liquid inside. She tried to resist it, but failed, and fell unconscious just seconds after she swallowed. Liam's ears fell back in true fear, and he looked with wide eyes at the pokemon who hurt her.

"Don't fight us and we won't have any problems."

Someone picked Liam up by the scruff of his neck and carried his limp body into the back room. He followed most of his other friends, the only one behind him being Leona, down the storage halls where he saw another pokemon unconscious. He could only assume it was the real owner of the store. Outside was a trading cart pulled by two, large pokemon that he had never seen before. They were quadruped with brown fur, black manes, and orange-red mud coating their legs. If he wasn't so scared, he would've been awestruck by the physical fortitude of the pokemon.

The pokemon carrying him opened the back of the trading cart, revealing many crates and boxes. The group of six friends were brought into the very back, where several cages were sitting among the boxes. Each of them were placed in a different cage, and heavy locks were slapped on. It was only a few minutes of rearranging boxes to hide the kidnapped pokemon before they felt the cart starting to move.

Steph, Carson, and Leona were knocked out, leaving Liam, Jason, and Kai to themselves. However, none of them dared to talk after the threat made earlier. The three conscious pokemon were silently crying to themselves, fear knotting their stomachs and clouding their vision. Eventually, they all fell asleep due to the emotional exhaustion.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hey guys! I've got another chapter for you right here! Just some quick credit to Dreaming I'm Latios and FlareAeon, who are the incredible authors of some great pokemon fanfics! Go check them out!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

 **Over the Side**

Night came quickly. The sunset light that slipped through the small holes between the panels of wood became rays from the moon. Darkness fell into the cargo container, causing even more fear amongst the cubs. The voices of their captors only scared them into staying quiet. The clicking of hooves against the ground and regular creaking of the cart were the only noises other than the conversing voices. Night came too quickly, and the darkness only added to the fear.

Carson, Leona, and Stephanie were still out cold, despite the hours that had passed, and were sprawled across the floors of their cages. Liam was curled in the corner of his cage, eyes wide and watching his sister. Whatever they had forced her to drink was obviously working, for she wasn't even twitching. Her lack of movement made him fear that she was dead, so he kept his eyes on her to make sure she kept breathing. His paws hurt from the tight ropes, but he ignored it. Tears streamed from his eyes as worry and fear gripped his chest.

Kai had spent a good two hours crying to himself, but now he had pulled himself together. His eyes were hard and watchful, barely blinking. Even in the dark he could see very well. His fear turned to determination. His instincts were starting to kick in, telling him that he wanted out. He was not a caged pokemon, but the son of a Gemini. He was not going to let anyone treat him and his friends like prisoners.

Jason, who never had the experience of true fear, didn't know if he was feeling real fear. He had memories of being either jump-scared or nervous scared, but not true fear. Right now, his chest tightened, his stomach dropped, and he could hear his heart beating in his ears. It was hard for him to think, and his breathing was quiet, but deep. Still, he tried to focus, constantly checking between all his friends and trying to think of a way out. He kept himself alert and didn't get distracted by his emotions. His family remained in silent fear, and they weren't getting anywhere with that.

Jason swallowed and opened his mouth slightly, letting out a squeaking whisper. "Liam."

The Eevee's green tipped tail twitched upon hearing his name. He cautiously lifted his head and looked over his shoulder, meeting eyes with Jason. He didn't say anything, but showed he was listening.

"Do you know where we are?" Jason didn't dare raise his voice above the barely audible level it was at.

Liam shook his head and returned to his vigil over Leona. Jason raised an eyebrow and tilted an ear at his cousin. He wasn't understanding how Liam was letting his actions and mind be dominated by his fear. But, rather than waste energy and safety asking about it, he quickly turned to Kai and called the rock type's name. One word turned into five, each just a little louder than the last, but the Rockruff didn't respond. Jason sighed and put his head down, letting bad thoughts consume his own.

He finally fell asleep when small slips of dawn peeked through the wood.

…

When he fully woke up, the floor under him tilted sideways, and his cage started sliding to the right. He bumped into Stephanie, who in turn bumped into Carson. The entire cart fell to its side, but didn't stop there, and began flipping around as it free-falled through the air. Boxes, crates, and cages rose into the air, occasionally bumping into the wooden walls.

A corner of the cart suddenly burst open, spilling at least half of the goods, including the cage that held the unconscious Stephanie. Jason screamed for her, catching a quick glimpse of the spinning scenery outside. From what he saw, the container they were in was rolling down a cliff, and that was confirmed when they again smacked against the jagged, slanted rock. The impact broke the entire storage container. Everything dispersed in all directions, landing in trees or on other items.

Jason curled into a ball just before he landed, attempting to protect himself. His back was forced into the bars of the cage by gravity as he landed on the grass below. A few more loud crashed came before everything became still once more. Upon hearing the silence, he opened his eyes.

Other crates had burst open, littering berries and manufactured goods everywhere. His cage had landed upside-down, but he had no interest in his own safety. His eyes scanned his surroundings. Leona's cage was hanging between two branches, Liam and Carson were just a few yards away from him, and Kai landed on the cluster of rocks at the base of the cliff. Including himself, he counted six pokemon, but only five of them were in cages.

The one not in a cage was also an Eevee. His silver fur was a little dirty and scraped, but he seemed oblivious to it. He quickly turned in circles, his green eyes skimming over each pokemon. Under his breath he counted, "Three, four, five…" He paused, panic falling over his face. Then, in a rushing manner, he counted again, still not reaching past five.

Jason had noticed what the shiny Eevee had: there were only five caged pokemon. The shiny's ears shot up and he faced Jason, or rather, the river behind him. When Jason looked back, he saw a small portion of a metal cage sticking above the surface. Both Eevee had reactions of fear. Jason screamed for his sister, while the shiny bolted. His speed was incredible as he reached the river's edge in five seconds. His bravery was even more astounding when he jumped right into the water.

Three seconds of silence felt like three hours to Jason. He could hear his own breathing, feel his own heartbeat, and feel his bones shaking. All the stress put on his body was released as the cage slowly began rising out of the water, revealing Stephanie, still out of consciousness.

After a few more seconds, the shiny emerged from the water. He pushed the cage partially on the riverbank, then ran around and pulled the rest of it out of the water. He paused for a minute, examining her closely, and sighed in relief when he saw her breathing normally. Then, he checked the other two unconscious pokemon, confirming that they weren't injured too much. He wasn't sure about Leona considering she was in the tree, but from what he saw she was still breathing and had no external injuries.

Jason looked to where they had fallen from, barely able to make out the figures he saw. The bottom platform of the trading cart was still up there, along with the Persian and the others who had captured them. They looked over the edge of the extremely high cliff, took a few seconds to discuss with each other, and then disappeared into the dark.

"The rest of you okay?" the shiny Eevee asked, breathing heavily.

"What just happened?" Kai asked, voice slightly shaking. He attempted to stand, but forgot about his paws tied together and fell back over himself.

A groan sounded from the trees, and the Eevee with red paws wearily opened her eyes. Through her blurry vision she saw a shiny Eevee. "Leonardo? What are you-" She attempted to stand, not realizing her predicament, and the shifted weight caused the cage to move. It slid out of the branches hold and plummeted toward the ground.

Leo again displayed his incredible speed. He darted from Stephanie to Leona in the two seconds it took her cage to fall. He let the hard metal smack against his back, catching the cage and lowering it to the ground. "Are you okay?" he asked with a worried voice. "Anything broken? Hurt?"

"Just a few bruises and scrapes," she chuckled. "Thanks."

"Any time."

"You know, you're pretty fast. And that means something coming from me, the quickest member on the Bot Team."

"Thank you." Leo sighed and stepped back, looking at all the cages.

"Guys, we need to do something now," Kai pointed out. He bit the ropes around his paws and pulled, breaking them as fast he could.

"Wait, where are we?" Leona asked in panic, suddenly realizing what was going on.

"Doesn't matter." The Rockruff broke the ropes on his front paws, rubbed his aching skin, and moved the the back paws. "They're probably coming to get us and we need to get out of here before they do."

"Liam?" Jason called to the silent Eevee. "Do you know how we can unlock these?"

"Oh, uh…" He was pulled out of his paralyzing cloud of thoughts and focused his attention on the padlock. He gave it a confused look, almost forgetting everything he knew.

"Here." Rather than wait on Liam, he politely came up with his own idea. He found a small, pointy rock, and stuck it in the keyhole. "One of you guys knows Iron Tail, right?"

"Yeah, I do," Leona stated. "Why?"

"Do you have enough energy to show me?"

"Sure?"

She pulled the energy from her heart, let it flow through her veins to her tail, and from the bottom up it coated itself in iron. Leo seemed to watch closely. He closed his eyes, replaying what he saw, and recreated it. He pulled the adaptably energy from his heart, imagined his tail turning to iron, and his instincts obeyed his thoughts. With a flick of his tail, he had formed a perfect Iron Tail.

Leo spun in a circle, hammering his Iron Tail against the rock in the padlock. The sharp edge combined with the force of impact cut through the gears inside. They were pushed away from the shackle, and it slid up.

"Whoa." Leona smiled, amazed at his Iron Tail. "If you know Iron Tail, why'd you need me to show you?"

He easily removed the lock from Leona's cage and helped her step out. "I didn't. I know Mimic, which is why I had you show me." The ropes were too strong for him to break, so he came up with another solution. "Here, I'll get Kai first, so he can break the ropes."

"And while you do," the Rockruff began, "you can tell us how you got in this mess with us."

Leo chuckled as he got to work. "I was looking around the shops downtown, and I saw a move break one of the windows. When I got a closer look, I saw _a lot_ of pokemon attacking you guys." He broke open Kai's lock, and Kai immediately rushed out.

"And you didn't think to go get anyone?" Jason asked accusingly.

He grimaced sheepishly. "I'll admit, it was a lack of judgement, but you guys would've been long gone by the time I actually found someone to who could help."

"He's got a point," Kai muffled through the biting of ropes as he freed Leona. "So where are we now?"

"I have no idea. I hid under the cart all night, and they moved it onto a train pretty much all day today. There were guards around the entire time and I could barely move without making noise. All I know is that we're really far outside of the kingdom."

The conscious pokemon had all been freed, and now Leonardo and Kai were moving on to Stephanie and Carson.

"What are we gonna do?" Liam asked restlessly, pacing in circles. "We're outside the kingdom! We have no idea where we are, how to find food, or even which way home is!"

Leo struck the rock with Iron Tail, breaking open the last lock. "Liam you need to calm down."

"How can I calm down when no one knows where we are and we could die out here?! Or worse! Those guys who kidnapped us could come find us and grab us again and we'll be right back where we started!"

The shiny Eevee simply chuckled. "You are way too smart for us to die of starvation out here. Just breathe, take a minute, by yourself if you need to, and just think."

Liam's green ears swayed as he nodded, and he walked away. He remained pacing back and forth, taking a couple deep breaths every few seconds. He was shaking. Everything happened so fast and his mind couldn't catch up. The fear and stress was getting to him, and it made him shut down and forget everything he knew. Trying to calm himself down was the only thing he could do.

"So," Kai began as he broke the last of the ropes, wincing when he saw the cuts on Carson's wrists, "you thought it would be a good idea to attack them while we were on a mountain?"

"Even I think that was a bad idea." Leona glanced around at the chunks and fragments of broke crates and the drastically dented bars of the cages. "And I'm usually up for anything."

"I didn't attack them," Leo stated, earning looks of confusion. "I think maybe some pokemon was looking to steal whatever was in the cart and attacked to tip it over."

"I hope Carson and Steph are okay," Jason mumbled, mostly to himself, sitting close to his sister. "The Persian hit them really hard and they couldn't protect themselves against the crash."

Leo shook his head. "I'm sure they're fine. The cages protected them from any serious damage."

"Okay, okay." Liam walked back over to them. He was still panicking a bit, but he managed to get himself to think properly. "So if we're outside Equilibrium, that means whoever kidnapped us must be from another kingdom, which also means that they probably don't have a good idea of what we look like. They only could've known we were the royals because of the color of our fur, and Jason and Steph's eyes."

"You've got a plan?" Leona asked her brother.

He nodded nervously. "In the cart I think I saw some Apricots and around here we should be able to find some Oran berry leaves."

"What exactly are you implying?" Jason inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"If you were paying attention in Mrs. Sandomir's class, you'd know that Apricots can remove fur dye and Oran leaves change eye color. And I think Steph's gonna have to cut her bangs."

Kai laughed at the idea. "Good luck with that."

"And if you guys do that," Leo assumed, "what's the plan after?"

Liam exhaled, calming himself. "We go up the mountain and try to find some help."

"Okay, you're insane," Leona laughed nervously. "You're saying you want us to try to find the people who kidnapped us?"

"No. We avoid them and try to find the kingdom they're from."

Kai brought up a thought-worthy point. "What if the kingdom we find is the one who told them to kidnap us?"

"They can't be. That cart we were loaded in was for trading which means those pokemon were there to trade goods which means our kingdom has peaceful terms with theirs _which means_ if we tell them we got lost they'll gladly help us get back home."

The others exchanged unsure glances.

"I know it's not the best idea, but it's all we've got. The pokemon who took us were probably just trying to get an advantage over Auras."

"The actions of a few citizens don't reflect the actions of a kingdom," Leo added. He smiled and nodded to Liam. "I'm with you, Liam."

"And the rest of us don't have a choice," Leona chuckled. "You're family."

Everyone acted quickly, searching through the broken carts for sharp edges and Apricots. Kai gathered leaves from nearby Oran berry trees, and they didn't look very appetizing. Liam squished the Apricots on a rock by the river and washed the dye out of his ears and tail while the others looked for anything that would help them carry leaves and food. After a couple minutes of no luck, Leo tore a shirt and tied the corners around a stick, making a knapsack. It wasn't the best, but it was all they could do at the moment.

Liam swapped with Jason and Leona, helping Leo and Kai gather food and leaves while the two other Eevee rinsed blue and red dye into the river. It wasn't long before they had all the supplies they needed and were ready to go. The only thing left to do was cut and wash the dye out of Steph's fur. Being the only other girl, Leona volunteered to do it. Jason carried his sister on his back and crouched close to the river so Leona could work

"She might kill us," Jason pointed out.

"No she won't," Leona disagreed. She carefully slid the sharp, broken fragment of metal back and forth, cutting Steph bangs off.

"What's taking so long?" Jason complained, his paws and legs getting tired from holding Stephanie too long.

"If we have to cut the bangs, I at least want her to look decent instead of a Rattata nest." After the pieces of fur were floating down the river, Leona slathered the Apricot mush on Steph's collar and washed the pink dye out. "Well, I hope this will be worth it."

Leonardo, being the only pokemon who had never seen the royals without fur dye, was surprised. Before him were four, normal Eevee with brown and cream fur. Each set of twins looked nearly identical. It was weird to see them this way, simple like other Eevee, but it also must've been weird to see an Eevee with silver fur.

"We should get moving," Leo stated. "I can carry either Carson or Steph, or the knapsack if you want me to."

Jason readjusted his sister, trying to make it so her bones weren't poking into his back. "I got Steph."

"I'll take Carson," Kai volunteered grudgingly. He easily lifted the Riolu on his back and walked to Liam. "You're leading the way, right?"

Liam grimaced nervously. "I guess."

"You'll do fine," Leonardo encouraged, slinging the knapsack over his shoulder.

Though all of them bared faces of calm and determination, everyone was shaken to their cores. Liam constantly felt he was forgetting something important, which was something that never happened. Kai was on his toes, his instincts keeping him alert, his eyes watched the surroundings, and his ears picked up all noises. Jason felt uneasy about everything. While he didn't let his emotions control his actions, he felt like he should be more scared than he was. In fact, he wasn't scared at all, just a bit worried.

Now, Leonardo displayed confidence and leadership, but deep in his heart he knew it couldn't last. He could never live up to the one who came before him; this he knew.

An hour later, Steph woke up. As soon as she did, memories came back to her, and she jolted upright. She pushed off Jason, knocking him over, and landed on the ground with a prepared Shadow Ball. The ghostly orb pulsed with energy, ready to be released, but she recognized her family and friends before letting it go. Instead, she stopped supplying it with energy, and the dark sphere dissipated into the air.

"What happened?" was the first thing she asked. Her voice was filled with confusion and panic, but the question delivered with curiosity and calmness. She didn't recognize the area in the slightest, and everything felt completely off, as if waking up from a deep sleep nap.

The situation was carefully explained to her, and her reaction was calm. Inside, however, her stomach felt as if it were plummeting toward the earth. She had no idea what would happen to them. Pokemon were searching for them, but the fact that they were taken alive probably meant none of them would be killed, and that eased Steph's nerves

"Are you sure we can eat these?" Jason asked doubtfully, poking at the dark green leaves.

"They're used as basic ingredients in most medicines," Liam recited as if it were common knowledge. "The pigments inside cause a change in eye color, which is why that's a side effect of almost every medicine."

Steph, without question, picked up four leaves and put them right in her mouth. Jason followed his sister's lead and did the same, immediately regretting it. As soon as his tongue touched the dark green leaves, he gagged, nearly spitting them out, but forced himself to close his mouth. The leaves turned into a foul smelling mush in his mouth, so he chewed and swallowed quickly, but the aftertaste remained.

Stephanie, though wanting to throw up at the taste of the leaves, simply shivered at the taste. "That was disgusting."

Liam force a chuckle, trying to calm his nerves. "It'll take a few minutes for your eyes to change color."

The walk continued. Liam led the way, trying to find a path where they could start climbing the mountain. His legs shook and felt like they would give out any second, but he didn't waver. He attempted to calm himself by focusing on the task at paw. Everyone was counting on him, they believed in him, and he wasn't going to let himself disappoint them.

Two hours passed before they found a stable path to climb. The steep mountain range they walked along seemed to stretch endlessly, and even the path they found looked unstable. There were huge rocks embedded in the mountain, which meant good grips for their paws.

Steph and Leonardo went first, aiding each other in climbing up to the ridge, and reached their destination with ease. The ground they were on was smooth with slight dents in it made from the constant rolling of wheels along the road.

Jason, Liam, and Kai had a bit more difficulty due to the unconscious Riolu on Kai's back. What took Steph and Leo ten minutes took the other four almost thirty. Carson, who trained as hard as he could for the school's battle team, had mostly muscle, making him heavier. But, they all reached the ledge of the road without getting hurt.

Until the rock crumbled under Kai's paws.

Leo's instincts drove him forward, taking complete control of his actions. He slammed his paw against the Rockruff's side, balancing him back on the ledge. His claws sunk deep into the side of the cliff, the muscles in his legs and paws tightened, and his teeth caught a scruff of blue fur. The weight pulled Leonardo over the edge, and he would've fallen had he not properly placed his paws.

Carson blinked, slight pain pulsing in his back. Once he opened his eyes all the way and he saw the drop under his feet, his immediate response was panic. "Oh snap!" He swung back, attempting to grab something, and the shifting of weight made Leo's paws slip. Luckily, there was enough time for Steph and Liam to grab hold of the shiny Eevee and pull him back up.

Carson was breathing heavily by the time he was pulled back on solid land, but laughed nonetheless. He was more relieved than entertained. "We're in some deep waters, aren't we?" He stood up, brushed the dirt off his knees, and met eyes with his friends. Despite the hundreds of questions running through his mind, the only one he asked was: "Why are Steph's and Jason's eyes green?"


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

 **New Sights for Sore Eyes**

As the sun began to rise, the group of seven were dead tired. The day and a half they spent traveling was uncomfortable and exhausting, they got little sleep, and the last time they ate was lunch of the day they were taken. The only exception were Stephanie and Jason, who consumed Oran leaves every few hours to keep the green color of their eyes, but that couldn't fill their hunger.

The sound of rushing water came to their ears when the sun was nearly at its peak, and all were reminded how thirsty they were. They started running up the road, the incline attempting to slow them down but failing. They came to a waterfall, where glistening blue water cascaded over shining, smooth, brown rocks, gradually eroding them.

Naturally, the pokemon formed a line. Though it hurt his paws, Carson cupped them together and held them slightly under the raging water, and drank. Then, he moved so the next in line could go. Everyone, except Carson, went around the line five times, but Carson decided to take a breather, otherwise he'd drown himself trying to rehydrate.

As he took a seat on the ground, he noticed the scuffs in the ground and followed them to the edge of the road where the ground dropped suddenly, and peered over.

"Guys," he called without looking away, "come look at this."

The six quadruped pokemon slowly stood and practically dragged themselves to the Riolu. But, once peering over the edge, they were wide awake. At the bottom of the steep, rocky cliff were hundreds of chunks and fragments of wood. Six battered cages with dented bars were scattered about, and crushed supplies laid everywhere. It looked like someone had violently torn the containers and items inside apart. Turning around, they saw patches of ice covering the road, the cliff, and parts of the waterfall. It glistened in the sunlight, but appeared to be nowhere near melting. They had completely missed it because of their thirst.

The group of seven glanced at each other in surprise. All of them were covered in cuts and bruises, looking as beat as the wreckage on the ground. They suddenly realized how lucky they were to have survived that fall.

"We fell down _that_!" Steph's eyes widened at the significant drop. "I'm glad I was asleep for that."

"Look at the ice," Jason whispered in awe, curious eyes focused on it. "Whoever made it is...strong."

"You guys were really lucky to have those cages," Leo stated in attempt to lighten the mood a bit. "Otherwise you might have come out with worse injuries.."

"Wait, you weren't in a cage," Leona pointed out, simply getting a raised eyebrow from the shiny Eevee.

"Dude you aren't even beat up as much as we are," Kai observed. "How?"

"I was on the bottom of the cart so when we started falling I just let go and slid down the cliff."

"That takes serious skill," Liam recalled, a little skeptical of the story.

"Look." He lifted his paw and showed them the scratches on the brown pads. "I do know how to use my surroundings."

"Wait, if you can do something like that, does that mean you train?" Carson inquired, a shocked expression painted across his face. "As in train for battle?"

"Well I used to. I am a pokemon, you know," the shiny Eevee stated with the slightest hint of sass in his voice.

"Yeah, but you never tried out for the battle team at school." Steph, being on varsity every year, remembered each face that came through the doors at tryouts. Not once did she see the Eevee with white fur.

Leona hadn't remembered him either. "Or the bot team."

"Just because I don't try out doesn't mean I can't battle."

They were all confused. From their experience, the best battlers and fighters were on the school teams. Practically everyone in the school tried out for the Battle Team and the Bot Team, and those who didn't put forth the excuse that they were too busy with school, hiding the fact that they were terrible fighters. There were a few who had joined the other sports teams, like swim or track, that couldn't try out for the major fighting teams. All in all, though, there were only a few handfuls of pokemon whose fighting abilities were unknown.

"Well, then why don't you try out?" Steph asked. It occurred to her that she rarely saw him do after school activities. "Do you think you'll not make it?"

He laughed. "No, that's not it."

"Then what?" Leona was confused by this shiny Eevee.

"Well, I have a job."

Carson suddenly broke away from the conversation and looked at the waterfall. He felt the atmosphere change.

"Dude you're in school," Kai mumbled through a mouthful of water. "I think your boss would understand if you were to miss a few hours to be a part of something in your school."

"No, it's just…" He paused. Leo didn't want to tell them the real reason he didn't tryout for sports. He was embarrassed, but had already said it was his job. Either way, they would know why. "My mom and I, we just-"

"Guys, shut up!" Carson snapped.

The appendages on the Riolu's ears rose, immediately sensing the presence of other pokemon. When everyone was quiet, he could hear the sound of a cheering voice.

Carson closed his eyes tightly, trying to remember what his dad taught him about using his aura. Messy blobs of light flashed in and out of his sight, but those split-seconds where he did feel another's aura, it was almost overwhelming. "I'm feeling a lot of power. I think it might be at least ten, maybe twenty pokemon."

Steph's instincts kicked into gear and she rapidly scanned the area. All she found was the narrow, two way road, the waterfall, and a stone bridge going over the waterfall, connecting to the rest of the road up the mountain.

"We could try going back down," Steph suggested.

With a whip of her tail, Leona easily coated it with iron energy from her heart. "Or we could fight."

Leonardo raised an eyebrow at her. "We're in no condition to fight."

"C'mon, Sterling Silver," she taunted. "You just said you knew how to fight. Can you or can't you?"

"I _can_ fight." He gritted his teeth, getting annoyed by her. He didn't like how Leona challenged him when all he was doing was looking out for them. "I'm just saying that we fell down a mountain, we've been walking all night, and there's no way the seven of us could take on a small army."

Leona rolled her eyes. "Ten does not qualify as an army. Besides, we don't even know-"

"Can someone please decide!" Carson nearly shouted, barely managing to keep his voice down.

"It's too late now."

Kai got low in a defensive stance, surrounding his teeth with a dark aura, and watched as the first shadow slipped around the bend of the mountainside. Everyone else tensed, but prepared their moves. Their hearts were beating quickly due to the anxiety of what was coming. It could've been someone who wanted to help, but it also could've been the pokemon who took them from their home in the first place.

However, what came around the boulders what not was they expected. It was a small, purple cloud pokemon, singing and twirling without a care in the world. It had a small black face, a bright blue spot on each check resembling blush, and two blue cloud-like appendages coming off it's head. No arms, no legs, just a floating body. It seemed too small and happy to do any real harm, but the seven stayed alert for more pokemon.

The cloud pokemon opened its eyes and saw seven, serious pokemon standing before it. Out of the seven, it saw four that it connected its aura to. As soon as it squealed with joy and ran toward them. Stephanie, Leona, Liam, and Jason seemed to stop functioning as their moves disappeared and they stared at the small pokemon in amazement. It floated toward them, dancing around the four Eevee with such joy that they smiled and laughed with it.

Carson breathed heavily after he used most of his energy trying to sense aura. He glanced confusingly back and forth between the cloud pokemon and the path it came down.

Kai chuckled at the carefree cloud. "I thought you said there was at least ten. You looked like you were in a lot of pain."

"I...I was." He paused, confused, then pointed at the cloud. "Was it coming from that?"

"This little pokemon?" Steph lifted her paw up and the cloud came with it, hanging on with the blue appendages coming from its body. It giggled with delight. "He doesn't seem very threatening."

The pokemon let go and landed unsteadily on the ground, but remained upright, and hovered back up a few inches once gaining its balance. Jason crouched down low and met his unnaturally green eyes with its little yellow one. "Hey there. What's your name?"

It spat out a random, incomprehensible sound in response. When Jason asked again, it responded with the same noise.

"Pewewew?" Liam repeated, tilting his ears.

The dark purple cloud made the noise again, this time sounding a bit more annoyed.

"Sorry, sorry," Liam apologized quickly.

"It must be a baby." Leonardo stepped closer and examined the pokemon. It seemed to have no idea that anyone beside the four brown Eevee existed, so Leo used that opportunity to get its scent.

"What are you doing?" Leona bared a weird look at the shiny Eevee, who taking quicks sniffs of the cloud pokemon.

"Getting its scent."

"Why?"

"Well based on the facts that it looks like it's pretty well taken care of and can't talk to us because it's a baby, I'd say it probably wandered away from its family. If we find them, they can tell us where the kingdom is."

Once Leo had picked up on the cloud's smell, he turned and started up the mountain, following the scent. The other followed his lead without question. The baby pokemon gave them a questioning look, but once one of the Eevee told it to follow, it gladly floated beside them.

"What kind of pokemon do you think it is?" Steph question, looking at the baby with awe.

"I don't know, but it sure seems to like you four," Kai pointed out.

"Pew pew!" it squeaked in agreement, dancing a little as it floated by them.

"This isn't the first time we've seen a new pokemon." Liam lowered his voice to a hush, checking to see if Leo was listening, but the shiny was too focused on following the scent. "Remember the book."

"The white Ninetales," Carson whispered, eyes widening. He remember the picture, but it was blurred in his memory. Still, he knew what he had seen.

"Not only that, but the night we were kidnapped, too."

"You're going to have to catch me up on that one," Leona insisted. "Because _I_ was out cold."

"It was a huge Pokemon pulling the cart," Jason explained, his face blank as he recalled the memory. "It was like a Rapidash, but a lot bigger and built for defense. And its hooves were huge and coated with...mud I think it was, but it looked like huge mounds just layered on its calves."

"Mud?"

Jason confirmed with a nod. "One-hundred percent sure."

They fell silent, engulfed in thoughts about everything they had seen. The book was the reason they were in this mess. Once they read it, their curiosity did the rest. It pushed them to go looking for another, which led them into the shop on Monday afternoon. Now it was Wednesday and they were wandering around with low standards, looking for anything or anyone to help them, probably even the pokemon who took them. They were covered in cuts and bruises, exhausted from falling down the mountain and climbing back up, and all in all looked like they hadn't slept in weeks. They followed Leo and stared at the ground, other thoughts clouding their minds, while the shiny focused his attention on the scent.

To him, it felt as if he should know the scent. He didn't, but had the feeling he should. His nose was close to the ground, so he wasn't really looking up and checking where he was going. All his attention was focused on keeping the scent. He hadn't used this ability since he was three years old and back home, so he had to concentrate intensely. He slowed to a stop once he reached a cave in the side of the mountain, and took a whiff of the air, confirming this is where the cloud pokemon came from.

"Guys," Leo called, getting no response. He turned to see his six friends slowly dragging themselves up the road, not paying attention. The cloud pokemon was dancing around the Eevee, trying to get their attention. "Guys look!"

They snapped their heads up, eyes immediately focusing on the cave leading inside the mountain.

"This is where the scent ends," Leo explained. "So we can either keep going up, or we can go into the cave."

Liam made up his mind within seconds. "Obviously we have to go inside. If that's where this one came from then there's gotta be something at the end."

The cloud pokemon made a sudden, loud, somewhat angry shriek, causing the pokemon surrounding it to jump. When it had gotten the attention it wanted, it smiled gleefully, the blue spots on its cheeks mimicking blush. It floated ahead of them at a quick pace, and journeyed into the cave. The others followed closely, thinking it was trying to lead them to its home. After half an hour of following the baby pokemon through the dark, twisting turns, they came to a split. The rock walls spread apart from each other, and a new wall formed in the middle of the widened path.

"Well that's not helpful," Kai sighed, his ears falling in disappointment.

Leo sniffed the air. "I can't find the scent, either." Had he been constantly practicing this ability like his mother told him, he would easily be able to track the scent days after a pokemon passed by, but now he couldn't pick it up after mere hours.

"Pewew pew!"

The cloud floated to the spot between the two paths and cried again. It gestured upward with its two blue appendages, but they had come so far in that it was hard to see beyond the immediate ground in front of them. Still, the baby insisted that they look up. It knew that the four Eevee wanted to go home, but its parents wanted it to lead them somewhere else first.

"I got this guys." Kai closed his eyes, focusing his energy on his teeth. A spark from his heart ignited a fire in his throat, and the fire surrounded his teeth. When he opened his mouth, a small, yet bright light flickered off his Fire Fang.

Liam stepped forward, taking the purple cloud pokemon's spot, and attempted to read the sign as Kai got closer. His heart skipped a beat once his eyes picked up on the words. "Guys! There are two kingdoms up ahead!"

"Finally!" Leona nearly shouted. "I just want to go home. Which way do we go?"

"Well," Liam squeaked. "That's the only problem. The Ice Domain is to the left, and the Fire Kingdom is to the right. One of them could be the ones who kidnapped us, and we don't know which."

"We could split up," Leo suggested.

"Funny," Leona added sarcastically.

"I'm serious." Leo was tempted to glare at her, due to her constant snarkiness toward him, but he didn't. In the beginning she was very nice, but now the snarky comments were coming in. "Imagine a Riolu, Rockruff, and four Eevee showing up at the kingdom's doorstep when those exact pokemon are the royals they just kidnapped and lost."

"That's _if_ we chose the wrong kingdom to go to," Leona pointed out. "If we split up, half of us would for sure end up back where we started."

Leonardo was getting a bit irritated with her. "And if we don't all of us might. The whole point of what we just did was to make sure you guys weren't recognized as royals, and if they see all of us together it'll be pretty suspicious."

"He has a point, Leona," Steph intervened. "I'm willing to take the chance. If we're in trouble, I'm sure half of us can hold our own while the other half gets help."

"It's better than all of us getting caught with no help," Liam added.

Leona looked around, and every seemed to be in agreement. She was the only one who was suspicious of Leonardo. He provided no explanation as to why he didn't participate in school activities while claiming he could fight, and they rarely found him around school to begin with. To add on to that, he had selflessly boarded the cart they were on in order to save them without even thinking to get police or anyone. _I'm sure his intentions aren't bad_ she thought to herself. _But he's definitely hiding something_. She didn't trust pokemon who were hiding something.

"Fine," she grumbled. "So how are we dividing up ?"

"Steph and I should split up," Jason summed up logically. "I think it'd look pretty weird if two Eevee with green eyes showed up at the same kingdom."

Carson and Liam agreed to go with Steph to the Ice Domain, while Leona and Kai joined Jason to the Fire Kingdom. The only reason Leona agreed was because of the name. The Fire Kingdom sounded like it was home to a lot of fire types, and she wanted to see how powerful they were. Her result on the evolution test had got her thinking hard about everything she thought of herself as.

When it was down to Leonardo and the baby cloud pokemon, the shiny let it choose who it wanted to go with. At first, it glanced between the four brown Eevee, not liking this decision to split up. It knew that splitting up or not, they'd end up at the same place, but now it would take longer. It grumbled and floated to Stephanie and Liam, so Leonardo chose to go to the Fire Kingdom to even out the groups.

When it came down to food, they were about to divide the few berries and Oran leaves up when the baby stopped them. It picked up berries and leaves with its two appendages and gestured down the path to the Ice Kingdom. When Leo checked the scent, he could smell water far down both paths, which meant there were probably berry plants down both paths. When he didn't smell any types of berries down the Fire Kingdom path, everyone agreed to let Leonardo, Kai, Jason, and Leona take the supply bag.

Then, knowing that it would be awhile before they saw each other again, they parted with goodbyes and see you soons. As soon as they parted ways, the royals felt lonely and afraid. From Jason's own point of view, either he was going to be captured again, or his friends and family were. Each of them felt this way, except Leonardo. He wasn't the one kidnapped or sought after, so naturally he couldn't understand what his friends were going through. They were scared, only partially for themselves, but mostly for each other.

Hours were spent walking through the long, small tunnel. It was completely dark, and the young pokemon were sure that the sun had already gone down despite no way to actually see outside. Occasionally, someone bumped into the tunnel walls as the path took twists and turns, but that was the only noise that occurred between anyone. They were all to sullen and scared of where they were going, or rather, where their family and friends were going.

The only one who was unfazed by any of this was the baby cloud pokemon. It floated gleefully along with Stephanie, Carson, and Liam without a care in the world. Of course, though, it knew that no one was in any real danger where they were going, but no one else knew that.

Then, a flash. Steph and Liam saw nothing, but the Riolu did. It was a small, quick blink of yellow light, but he knew it was there. His friends didn't seem to see it, but he stayed alert as he walked on, listening. The only sound he heard for a while was the sound of growling stomachs and the echoing of flowing water. They were hungry and thirsty, but the sound of water and the cheerfulness of the cloud pokemon assured them there was food and water up ahead. Carson, however, wasn't paying attention to his stomach at all. He knew that he saw something, and kept his eyes wide open in case he saw it again.

He didn't stop watching, even when they came to the small rest spot along the cave path. A few, small Oran berry trees surrounded a small pond at the side of the tunnel, supplied by a tiny stream of water flowing from the wall. Another small stream split off from the pond, cut through the cave floor, and disappeared into the opposite wall. A few artificial lights kept the area lit, which meant the Ice Domain had to be nearby if it was supplying this stop with electricity. It was a nice break from the constant darkness of the cave.

Carson finally gave up his vigil when Steph offered him an Oran berry. He gladly took it and ate, the sweet juices and flesh filling his empty stomach. As he ate, he watched Steph used her claws to cut an Oran berry for the baby pokemon. It picked up the slices with its wisp-like appendages and calmly ate. After it was done eating, it fell asleep against Liam's side.

The Riolu forgot about the flash of light and began thinking about the book he read. There were new ways of evolution that Equilibrium Kingdom didn't know about. There might be more for him than he thought. Maybe he had two evolutions he could chose from, or maybe he could evolve again after becoming a Lucario. Just like his Eevee friends, he was concerned about his evolution. His mother had made an impossible evolution, and he wanted to live up to her name. He wanted to make his parents proud, or at least he thought he did. The thought that his parents, the rulers over his kingdom and the pokemon he trusted the most, could be lying about evolution almost made him feel like he didn't want to be around them. He was hoping that they weren't lying.

Suddenly, a soft, quiet giggle echoed through the cave. Carson snapped his head up and looked around. "Did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Liam asked. His heart sped up due to Carson's nervousness.

This time, it was a ghostly laugh. It was louder than before, and the group of three jumped to their paws. The baby rolled onto the floor when Liam left its side, and it groggily floated back up into the air.

"I heard it that time," Steph croaked, feeling very creeped out.

" _You're almost there_."

They screamed at the high-pitched voice that seemed to come from nowhere. Out of the corner of his eye, Carson spotted a yellow pokemon. He pulled Steph and the baby toward him and Liam, getting a clear view of the doll-like pokemon standing in their path. It stared at them for a long time with a smile drawn on its face. After hearing its voice, they thought it was a ghost, but once Liam and Stephanie saw the small Pikachu, they sighed in relief. Carson, however, was cautious, for he didn't see the friendly pokemon they saw.

"Thank goodness we found someone," Steph sighed happily. "We're trying to get to the Ice Domain, and it is this-"

Carson elbowed the Eevee's ribs. "Don't tell it where we're going!" he whispered harshly. He could feel the uncomfortable ghostly energy coming from whatever the pokemon was, but pushed it out of his mind. He cleared his throat and spoke firmly, "We need to get by."

"I can help you find the way." It's voice was sincere, almost like a little girl who was simply trying to be nice. "I can even show you, if you'd like."

"No," Carson denied immediately.

"Carson?" Liam looked at the Riolu questioningly, wondering why he was acting strange. "The Pikachu's trying to help us!"

"That is not a Pikachu." He stared up and down at the pokemon, wondering how they could see a Mouse pokemon from that. Carson saw the old rags of a Pikachu doll, and a poorly made one at that, but it could hardly resemble the real electric type. The face had clearly been drawn on with marker, and the tail looked like a bended stick. The only reason Carson was so cautious of the poor looking pokemon was because he knew it was wearing was a disguise. Two, black eyes peered through two holes in the body and dark fringes of its real body were visible under the hem. That, combined with the broken look of its disguise made the pokemon look demented and frightening.

She laughed, clearly entertained. "Tapu Koko told me you would see through my disguise."

Though Carson didn't see anything happening, Steph and Liam saw the round Pikachu flicker, as if she were disappearing. They stepped back in surprise, mostly fearful surprise, as the flickering sped up. When the Pikachu transformed into a beaten up doll, Steph's instincts kicked right in. She fired a Shadow Ball, but the small pokemon easily dodged it. She charged up another one, ready to fire.

"Please wait, friend."

Steph growled, but the young voice stopped her from firing. It was just one pokemon who wasn't attacking. She let the Shadow Ball shrink in size, but held onto it just in case.

"Thank you," the Pikachu doll sighed in relief. "I was told you were lost and sent to come find you."

"And we should trust you because…"

"I was told you would say that." She giggled, finding the encounter with these pokemon unlike encounters with the legendary ones. "I know a lot about you. You're Carson, Liam, and Stephanie."

"That's not worthy of trust." Liam eyed the pokemon up and down, curious as opposed to scared. "That's just creepy."

"And knowing our names can't prove anything," Steph added, narrowing her eyes. "You could've easily been following us, which adds more reason to not trust you."

"How about Stephanie Lawless, Liam Rose, and Carson Terranova?"

Steph shifted uneasily on her paws, wondering how this pokemon could know even their last names, but she remained stern. "Nope."

"That's okay. I was told not to expect you to trust me just because I know your names." The Pikachu doll giggled again, thinking about the looks they were about to have on their faces. "Stephanie, for your evolution test you received a Sylveon, and Liam, you received an Espeon."

"Who are you?!" Carson barked immediately, his tone serious and angry.

"And what kind of pokemon are you?" Liam questioned, his tone a bit more curious than Carson's. It would've amazed him how she knew his evolution test result, but his stomach felt like it was dropping due to his cousin and friend knowing.

She attempted to stand up straighter, only for her disguise to lean to another side. "My name is Silver, I'm a Mimikyu, I'm here to guide you to a safe place."

…

Similar to the unaffected cloud pokemon with Carson, Liam, and Stephanie, the other group of royals had a similar problem: Leonardo. He walked along, knowing nothing was wrong for him. However, he knew that the royals were having a rough time, so he said nothing. Or, at least he tried to, but the silence was very awkward for him. Every couple of minutes, he would ask a question, or try to make the mood less heavy, but it didn't work.

Eventually, Leona got sick of his questioning, pulled him a couple paces behind Kai and Jason, and growled, "You might wanna stop talking."

Leo rubbed the spot on his arm where Leona had harshly pulled at him. "I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

"Yeah? Well don't."

"I'm sorry. I'm just trying to help."

"Yeah, you seem to be doing a lot of that, and it's not helping"

He furrowed his eyebrows at her, taking high offense. "Do you have a problem with me?" She was about to respond, but Leo kept going. "We were fine at first, but as soon as I said I could fight, you started disregarding anything I said. So what's up?"

Leona chuckled in disbelief. "Well, you claimed you could fight, yet you don't join any teams at school and say it's because of your job, but you and I both know that you can easily get out of that. So either you're lying about your fighting abilities or you're lying about why. And I don't like liars."

"First I-"

She didn't even let him begin talking. "But I can get over that. Maybe you have your own reason you don't want to share, and that's cool."

"Then what's your problem with me?"

"Why did you come after us?"

He gave her a confused look. "What?"

"That night when we were kidnapped, you came after us. Why?"

"Because you were in trouble?" Leonardo was confused by her question. Was she not glad he came to help? "Is there a certain thing you want me say or...what?"

"I want you to tell me the real reason you came after us." Leona looked him dead in his green eyes, completely serious. "You didn't get any police or guards, and they're everywhere in Geomancy City. Normally, a pokemon would get help if he saw another pokemon being kidnapped. But you, _you_ selflessly charged after us and followed us in the middle of nowhere. You had no concern for yourself."

There was a brief pause as Leo waited for more, but Leona didn't continue, so he questioned, "Is there something wrong with that?"

"That was the least helpful thing you could've done. You saw the cart of the pokemon that took us and decided that getting yourself lost would be more helpful than giving someone a clue as to where we were." She noticed the emotion in the shiny's eyes change to guilt, but didn't stop. "You selflessly risked your own life which amounted to nothing. So I'm asking: why did you come after us?"

He looked at the ground and growled.

"Were you trying to stop them yourself? Did you get scared when you saw them up close? Were you trying to prove something? What?"

"Fine!" he barked. "You want an answer? I _was_ trying to prove something. I thought I could stop them and I wanted to stop them by myself because I wanted to prove to myself that I could. Is that the answer you wanted?"

He growled to himself and walked ahead, leaving the conversation. Leona's harsh, questioning gaze turned soft. She felt somewhat guilty for pushing Leo to nearly yelling. He was clearly upset about his decision during the situation, and she didn't realize until he reacted to her questions. However, she didn't feel guilty for making him realize how unwise his decision was. He dove headfirst into danger, which seemed like a very Stephanie thing to do, only Steph would be smarter about a severe situation whereas Leo seemed to forget that others were in danger and reacted on the want to prove himself.

Leona jogged up to his side. "Hey, hey sorry. I'm sorry."

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind and calm his emotions. "No. I'm sorry I snapped. I'm sorry."

"Well I'm the one who pushed you," Leona pointed out with a softer tone. "Why did you want to stop them by yourself?"

The shiny Eevee inhaled and sighed, stalling the answer. "You ever met an Eevee from the Tribe Lands?"

"A few times. My mom and aunt were born there before they were separated from home, so we go visit our grandparents there. It used to be just Umbreon and Espeon who lived there, but now it's all the evolutions, and most of them are really strong."

"Yeah. I don't tell any pokemon this," he mumbled as he looked up to make sure Kai and Jason weren't watching, "but I was born in the Tribe Lands."

Leona's eyes widened. "Really?!"

"Shhh," Leo shushed. "Yes. And every Eevee is expected to want to be as strong as the Wild One and the Descending One because the Tribe Lands are where the two strongest pokemon were born. We're supposed to be an example, or whatever."

"So you know how to fight because you're from there?" she asked, getting a nod in response. "I've never seen any Eevee from the Tribe Lands move to the city."

"Except me." Leonardo didn't want to tell Leona anything else, but he felt better talking about it. "My mom and I moved because I was stressed, pushing myself way too hard, and just wasn't doing well at all. But I still want to live up to the Wild One. So I don't do any clubs at school because I'm off training by myself, and I have a part time job so I don't have to tell anyone I'm training. That's why I wanted to save you guys myself. Because I thought if I could save you guys on my own, that I would be honoring the Wild One."

Leona was silent for a few second before responding, "Welcome to the club."

"What?"

"Dude, you're friends with four Eevee, the literal sons and daughters of the Wild One and Descending One. Not to mention the two cubs who are children of the Gemini. We're all desperately trying to live up to our parents and we're all freaking out and don't know what to do, so welcome to the club."

He stopped walking for a second, confused. He hadn't realized that other pokemon were dealing with issues similar to him. He smiled, relief washing over him and realizing, and jogged to catch up with Leona. "Hey that-"

Suddenly, the four pokemon were knocked down by a flash of lightning zooming by them. Leona and Kai, attack mode kicking in, quickly stood back up and charged their moves: a Fire Fang by the Rockruff and Shadow Ball by the Eevee. They looked to where the lightning had gone, only to be thrown back on the ground by the same lightening. This time, instead of zooming away, it zig-zagged around the area until it calmed down enough to float in one place.

"Sorry about that," the pokemon apologized with a buzzing voice. Its small, orange, plasma body was surrounded by an electric aura that formed lightningbolt appendages. "Sometimes I go a little too fast."

"No problem," Leo groaned as he stood, his legs sore from where he landed.

"Great! Now to the point."

"Ha, a Rotom." Kai glanced upward at the floating pokemon and smiled genuinely. "No wonder you're in such a hurry."

"Well you four have got places to be," the Rotom buzzed excitedly. "Now come on!"

He zoomed down the path to the Fire Kingdom, whereas the other four pokemon stayed in their place. They exchanged confused glances, wondering who the Rotom was. After a few seconds, the blur of lighting rushed back to them, creating a small gust of wind.

"Well?" he questioned impatiently. "Whattya waiting for?"

"Dude," Jason began, "we have no idea who you are. Why would we follow you?"

"Ugh, fine. I'm Bolt, you're Jason, Kai, Leona, and Leonardo. Great now we know each other! Can we go?!"

Their hearts sped up with fear as they heard Bolt say their names. The only way the Rotom could've known their names was if he was following them.

Bolt snickered once he saw their faces. "It's okay. You can trust me."

"Just because you say it doesn't make it true," Kai growled, getting into a defensive position. "How do you know our names?"

"I was told you were lost and sent to find you and bring you to a safe place. Though, you split up which is making it very hard to get you all where I need to bring you."

"And where is it you need to bring us?" Leona asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I can't tell you specifically, but really I'm bringing you to the Fire Kingdom. Oh, and don't worry. The pokemon who kidnapped you aren't from there, nor is your family in danger at the Ice Domain."

"You know it sounds like you've been following us," Leo stated. He wasn't in a defensive or attacking position, nor did he have any move prepared, which made Leona doubt his fighting skills, despite his story from earlier.

"Boy you guys are difficult," Bolt sighed. "Okay. Jason and Leona, when you were on vacation with your family your moves suddenly became more powerful, right?"

Their shocked faces gave Bolt the answer he needed. How did he know? They hadn't discussed what happened with their moves with Stephanie and Liam, or with each other. Everything had been happening all at once and they didn't understand it.

"I'm supposed to take you to help you understand what happened, but I can't tell you a lot. Now please, we have to go!"

They exchanged unsure glances.

"It's your call," Kai said, gesturing to Jason and Leona. "If you think we should follow him, I'm with you."

Jason and Leona looked at each other and nodded.

"Hold on." Leona turned around to face the Rotom. "You said that we're not in danger, and that the rest of my family isn't in danger either."

"I promise!" Bolt exclaimed. "Now let's go!"


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

 **Fire and Ice**

When they were finally out of the cave and back on a mountain path, the sun was at its highest peak. Stephanie couldn't believe that they were in the cave for almost an entire day. She took a mental note, telling herself that it was now Thursday.

Since they had been gone, she had been tracking the number of days. It wasn't helping her, or anyone, but she wanted to know how long she was away from home. She figured that the longer she was gone, the more likely she was to get back home. Steph knew that wasn't exactly the case, but it was better than giving up hope.

"I've never met a pokemon like you." Liam looked all around at the Mimikyu in daylight, drawing a mental picture of the pokemon. "I've never even heard of a pokemon called Mimikyu."

"There's lots of new pokemon we haven't seen or heard of," Carson added. "Remember the book."

"That's right," Silver sang. "You guys read that restricted book."

"Why am I not surprised you know that?" Steph asked, seemingly irritated. "Do you also know what new types of evolution there are?"

"I do!" Silver tweeted as she continued to lead the way up the mountain. "But I don't want you to get any false hopes, so I will tell you that all the evolutions you know as an Eevee now are all there are. I'm sorry."

"Well we do have eight to choose from," Liam pointed out, not at all disappointed. He probably would've been overwhelmed if there was another choice.

"Speaking of evolution…" Steph looked toward her cousin. "...Liam, you got an Espeon?"

He frowned and his ears fell back. He didn't know exactly how he felt about it, but he couldn't take it back now. "Yeah, but…"

"But what?" Carson questioned. "Psychic types are cool."

"It just doesn't feel like me," Liam admitted. "I mean, I know I'm smart and everything. And-"

"And the more an Espeon knows the stronger its powers are," Carson informed, gesturing to Liam. "It kinda seems perfect for you."

"Only because I do well in school. But everyone thought it would be Leafeon, I wanted an Umbreon or Jolteon, and even my mom and dad never once mentioned the possibility of getting Espeon. Yet, the test spits out an Espeon, and I have no idea what to do."

"Liam, you don't have to chose what makes you stronger. That's my thing." Stephanie gave him a comforting smile. "If you want an Umbreon or Jolteon, then be an Umbreon or Jolteon. No one's stopping you."

"I want to," Liam sighed, shutting his eyes tightly, "but one day I'm going to be on the Representative Council, and I'm expected to be a strong leader. How can I do that if I didn't evolve into my strongest evolution?"

"Hate to say it," Carson began, "but it sounds like you don't want to find a solution to the problem."

"No, I do, I do. I'm just...stuck between a rock and a hard place."

"Pewewew!"

Liam nearly fell over as the baby cloud pokemon used its blue appendages to hug his leg. His conflicted emotions shifted to happiness once it hugged him, and he hugged it back. "Thanks little guy."

"Pew wew!"

"So, Carson," Silver sang, changing topics. "What did you think of the restricted book you read?"

"I didn't know what to think," the Riolu chuckled. "I had all this information at once."

Steph laughed, remembering her friend that night. "Well, you seemed pretty upset that something was being kept from us."

"Weren't you?"

"Yeah, but you were on an entirely different level of upset."

"Of course. Our kingdom thinks they're protecting us by not telling us about evolution, but it's only making us weak against whatever's out there. Not only that, but a lot of pokemon could be missing out on a great opportunity."

Silver smiled under her disguise, and the stick she was carrying for a tail wagged slightly. "Rhetta would really like you!"

Carson raised an eyebrow. "Rhetta? Who's Rhetta?"

"Oops," Silver giggled. "Sorry I can't tell you yet."

"Is there anything you can?" Liam sighed, exhausted by the secrecy.

"Your friends and family are going to the Fire Kingdom, and they'll be safe there as you will be at the Ice Domain."

Steph's ears pointed to the sky. "So neither of the kingdoms we're going to tried to kidnap us?"

"Nope. That would be the Ultra Kingdom."

"Ultra Kingdom?" Liam whined. "Tapu Koko, Mimikyu, Rhetta? The more you talk the more confused I get."

"I'm sorry friend. I know it's very confusing, but I promise everything will be explained soon." Silver finally reached the top of the trail. "But I have good news! You can see the Ice Domain from here!"

The two Eevee, Riolu, and cloud pokemon joined Mimikyu in staring. Just down the small mountain peak was a huge, sparkling castle with beautiful arches and domes that stood above the rest of the kingdom on the edge of a basin and in front of a small circle of mountains. Half of it was built on a sloping cliff. The walls were made of smooth and glistening ice, a bright comparison to the rest of the landscape, though the smaller buildings were decorated with a variety of colored lights. The majority of the kingdom stretched beyond with what must have been hundreds, if not thousands, of buildings. A beautiful, sparkling lake sat in the basin on the south side of the kingdom, closest to the cubs, and to the left of the kingdom was an ocean that stretched over the horizon. Surrounding the border was a wall made of complete ice, tiny compared to that of Equilibrium Kingdom.

"That's pretty impressive," Carson admitted with an amazed smile.

"Look at the designs." Steph's eyes widened as she gazed at the intricate and complex carvings on the outside of the ice palace. "There's nothing like this back home."

Liam looked around, seeing another large castle just behind the small circle of mountains. This one was made of stone as opposed to ice. "Silver, what's that over there?"

"That's the Fire Kingdom. Your friends should be there now."

…

The tunnel had led Leona, Jason, Kai, and Leonardo out of the cave. The Rotom, however, was the one who brought them to the Fire Kingdom's doorstep. Bordering it was a medium-sized basin with a clear lake at the bottom, and on the opposite side the kingdom continued to stretch on.

Bolt led them straight up to the stone wall surrounding the Fire Kingdom, where guards stood watch. They aimed their weapons in an attacking manner at the strangers, but calmed down once they saw the familiar Bolt leading them. He explained the situation of the lost pokemon, leaving out the two most important details: their royalty and their purpose at the kingdom. The guards then questioned the Eevee and Rockruff.

Leona, however, heard nothing. She was entranced by the pokemon who stood guard. His body was similar to a Tirtouga, but instead he had a red shell with several pointed spikes extending in all directions. He had an additional shell on his head with black markings around his eyes.

"Why hasn't she said anything?" the guard asked with a harsh voice, gesturing to Leona, who hadn't stop staring.

"Sorry," Kai apologized, poking Leona's leg to snap her out of her trance. He was equally amazed and confused by the pokemon. "We've just never seen a pokemon like you."

He glared at them. "And what does that mean?"

"We're uh, from a place, and…" Leona paused, still taking in the pokemon standing in front of her. "...I'm sorry. What kind of pokemon are you?"

"A Turtonator. I'm surprised you don't know that. SoundS a lot like those Equilibrians who seem to hate us Terrams."

The other guard, a Magmar, stepped forward and gestured for the Eevee and Rockruff to follow him. "C'mon. Bolt says the king needs to meet you, so follow the guards."

Before they could say anything, the wooden doors in the stone wall opened and group of four guards came out and surrounded them, but not in a threatening way. The word "Terrams" sent them all into shock, except for Leonardo for he hadn't read the book, and they allowed themselves to be escorted into the kingdom.

Despite being called the Fire Kingdom, many of the pokemon were not fire types, nor did the architecture resembled anything fire nor fire related. In fact, most of the buildings were colored beautifully with different paintings of pokemon and built with a level of advanced architecture the Equilibrians had not yet reached.

"Bolt," Jason called with a concerned voice. "Are the pokemon here called the Terrams?"

"You betcha," the Rotom affirmed.

"We're dead," Kai sighed. It wasn't a joke, but an honest observation. "We've been duped by this Rotom and we're going to die.

Leo raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? These pokemon are helping us."

"You don't get it." Leona's stomach knotted. "A long time ago, Auras, Earth, and Oblivion destroyed the Terram Kingdoms."

"What history book are you reading? I don't ever think I've heard the word Terrams in our history books."

"That's because it's not in our history books," Kai stated.

"Well if it's not in our-" Leonardo paused as he remembered the school announcement days before. "-you didn't."

"We did," Jason admitted nervously, regretting his own bad decisions.

Leona sniggered, unamused and full of dread. "Yup, and we nearly got caught. The security guards chased us out."

"That's what you were doing at that bookstore," Leo deduced. "Looking for another one so you could read it."

"Okay, yes, bad decisions." Kai pushed the side topic away. "The main point is that in the book we read, Auras, Oblivion, and Earth Kingdom destroyed the Terram Kingdoms, so Equilibrians and Terrams don't have a good relationship with each other."

"That is true," Bolt buzzed in agreement, alerting the four that he was listening to their conversation, "I should advise you against revealing yourself as Equilibrians, however. But you have nothing to worry about. The Terrams are forgiving pokemon and would never hurt the innocent."

They were able to relax a bit until they arrived at the castle. The grey stone was carved perfectly to form a castle composed of multiple towers. Red designs were painted all over, but at a closer look the cubs found that it was fire decorating the walls, fueled by nothing yet burning brightly. Their eyes sparkled in amazement at not only the outside, but the beauty and elegance of the inside.

The cubs were lead to the throne room, where they met the eyes of another unfamiliar pokemon, to which Leona found amazing. His body, head, and bone were similarly styled to a normal Marowak, but its body was a dark black along with the marking on the forehead of its skull. The bone it carried had blue tongues of fire glowing brightly on each end. Leona could tell it was a fire type, but it didn't make sense. Did Cubone have another evolution? Was it not a Marowak?

"So these are the pokemon?" he questioned one of the guards, getting a quick nod and a 'yes King Hollow' in response. "Thank you. Please wait outside."

"Don't worry," Bolt whispered as the guards left the room. He wanted to reassure them that they were safe.

The king cleared his throat. "Welcome to the Fire Kingdom. I'm sure you had a chance to see why we're called that."

"The fire on the outside of the building is incredible," Leonardo complimented. "It's a beautiful kingdom."

The king smiled. "Your compliment is well appreciated. I must say, we've never seen a shiny Eevee."

" _We've_ never seen a pokemon like you," Leona stated with admiration. "Are you a Marowak?"

"I am, but I'm not surprised that you were unsure."

The Eevee and Rockruff exchanged glances. The Turtonator at the gate had said something different, and now they were becoming curious.

"What are your names?" King Hollow asked, stepping down from his throne and approaching the pokemon. Compared to them, he was huge, and being so close forced them to look up to meet his eyes.

Leona took the initiative. "I'm Leona." She used this opportunity to give a hint to her fellow royals. Normally, being a princess, she would use her full name, but her full name included the royal family name, so she stayed quiet. Although Bolt assured them that the Terrams didn't want any harm to come to them, Leona wasn't fully buying it.

The green eyed Eevee got the message. "Jason."

"Kai."

"Leonardo."

"Excellent," the king smiled. "So tell me: how did the four of you end up so far from home?"

"We were kidnapped," Jason explained, mentally picking out details that might give them away as royals. "We're not sure why they took us, or who, but we were able to get away after the cart was attacked."

"Rolled down the side of a mountain," Leo added.

Immediately, King Hollow was concerned. "My, are you hurt?"

"No, just a few scrapes and bruises," Leonardo assured. "But thank you for your concern."

"After we escaped," Jason continued, "we were wandering around, trying to figure out where we were, and Bolt found us and led us here."

"Ah, yes. Bolt is a very kind pokemon. We're lucky to have him here at our kingdom." Hollow's smile turned to seriousness. "Can you tell me anything more about the pokemon who took you?"

Kai grimaced, not wanting to answer out of fear that the Marowak was tricking them, but Bolt nudged him and smiled. "Honestly, we didn't get a very good look at them. I remember seeing a Persian, but not much else."

"There was a symbol," Leonardo stated, staring into space as he remembered. "It was right on the side of the cart."

Leona's attention focused on Leo. "What did it look like?"

"A pokemon. Sorta like a Tentacruel, but the head was shaped more like a hat with stars on it."

"That would be Nihilego." King Hollow looked at the four pokemon with complete seriousness. "From what you've told me, it sounds like you were taken by the Ultra Kingdom."

Leonardo, Jason, Leona, and Kai had never heard of the Ultra Kingdom before, but they obviously came to Equilibrium to trade.

"Who are they?" Jason asked, worry building up in his chest.

"They were a kingdom who had already formed by the time the Terrams had moved here," the king explained. His voice was filled with concern. "We assisted in the freeing of a pokemon they had captured named Cosmog. Cosmog could open wormholes to another realm, where pokemon called Ultra Beasts reside, by putting it under severe pain and stress. The symbol you saw, Leonardo, was one of those seven Ultra Beasts."

Leona unconsciously scratched the ground. "We're in trouble, aren't we?"

"I wish I could tell you otherwise, but I'm afraid so."

"What do we have to do with the Ultra Beasts?" Leo asked, both curious and nervous.

"Well, after the Terrams freed Cosmog, we provided it protection, and Ultra Kingdom declared war on us. Since Auras, Oblivion, and Earth Kingdom weren't quite fond of Terrams, the Ultra Kingdom easily gained and kept them as an ally. About one year ago, we learned that they tried to bring Equilibrium into war with us as well, but your kingdom refused. They might've taken you to force your kingdom to fight us in exchange for your safety."

"But why would they want us?" Jason asked, momentarily forgetting his royalty status.

"Because you're the royals of Equilibrium. Your parents wouldn't hesitate to go to war with us if it ensured your safety."

At that point, their stomach dropped. The shocked, almost fearful looks caused the Rotom to snicker.

Kai backed away, his heartbeat getting faster. "How did you know?"

"Did you tell someone?" Leona asked, staring straight at Bolt.

King Hollow quickly stepped in. "No, he did not. I received a message from the Ice Domain before your arrival, informing me that two Eevee and a Riolu from Equilibrium arrived there less than an hour ago. Can't be a coincidence that the royals of Equilibrium happen to be the same pokemon that showed up at our doorstep."

They backed away, getting closer to the entrance.

"So what are you going to do with us now?" Jason asked, glancing back at the door to make sure they could make a run for it.

"Please don't be alarmed. I assure you, we're not going to harm you in any way. Just because you're Equilibrians doesn't mean we have anything against you."

"That secret didn't last long," Kai sighed.

The king chuckled. "If our kingdoms didn't operate as nearly one, you just might have kept it a secret."

"Any chance you can keep this to yourself?" Leona asked. "We just want to get home without any trouble."

"Of course. Only myself and the queen of the Ice Domain will know."

"Thank you," Jason replied in relief. "We don't want anyone coming after us here and endangering your kingdom, too."

"Even if they do, we will keep you safe, but hopefully you'll be home by then." King Hollow knocked on the door to the throne room, signalling the guards in. "While I work everything out with the queen, you can all relax and eat as much as you like."

…

The Ice Domain was even more beautiful up close than it was from afar. After putting on her Pikachu illusion, Silver was easily able to lead them around the city. She would've showed them more had they not requested to go to the king and queen. They were exhausted, hungry, and wanted to see Kai, Leona, Jason, and Leonardo safe. Silver, being a highly trusted and known pokemon (as a Pikachu, that is), was able to lead them straight to the throne room, where three pokemon were sitting together, discussing.

Carson froze at the door, and as soon as Stephanie and Liam saw what he did, they couldn't believe their eyes. Before them were not one, but two Ninetales, each with pale blue fur and slender bodies. The tips of their cloud-like tails were pure white, along with most of their legs, and the tips of the soft, flowing crests atop their heads. Piercing blue eyes focused on the Equilibrians as soon as they walked in.

Silver had to nudge them in, and even then they wouldn't go until she trotted ahead of them. Carson paused after each step, trying to take in the situation. His face was blank as his mind connected the picture in the book to the pokemon he saw in front of him.

"Good evening Queen Valerie, Princess Kara, Aris Westney," Silver greeted, the tail of her Pikachu disguise wagging.

Liam, upon hearing the name, lost interest in the white Ninetales. "Aris West-" He was cut off from his sentence by the realization that he was shouting.

Silver cleared her throat. "This is Carson, Liam, and Stephanie, the lost pokemon we informed you were coming."

"Ah, yes. If you could excuse me Aris. We'll continue our discussion later." The older Ninetales turned to the younger one. "Please don't get into any trouble."

The princess rolled her eyes as she began walking away. "No promises."

Liam's shocked expressions turned to one of amazement as he noticed the third pokemon in the room, Aris Westney. Not only did he admire the pokemon for his famous works of literature, but for being an evolution that he was considering becoming: an Umbreon. Aris's red eyes caught sight of Liam's brown ones looking at him with admiration, so Aris smiled his way before leaving. The Eevee nearly screamed, not believing he had learned what pokemon a well known writer was.

Steph, however, felt something weird about the Umbreon as soon as he glanced at her, so she kept her eyes off him. Instead, she focused on the younger Ninetales, Princess Kara. She carried herself like a princess was expected to, but seemed like she could care less about the visitors. On her front left leg were three, colored bands that looked as if they were seared into her fur. The outer two were a deep purple, and the middle was a dark blue.

Once the other two pokemon were gone, Queen Valerie straightened up and cleared her throat. It was obvious that her previous discussion was stressful. "So you're the royals who were kidnapped. And I see you've met Cosmog."

Before anyone had a chance to panic, the queen explained everything that their friends and family had learned in the Fire Domain, including the circumstances of their kidnapping. The queen promised that their royal status would stay secret, even in the Fire Kingdom. They were even told about Cosmog, the baby cloud pokemon who had been accompanying them on their journey. It was calming to find that everyone was fine and that they would be reunited soon.

The sun was just starting to slip below the horizon, leaving it almost hard to see, but not quite. Carson, Stephanie, and Liam were being brought to a meeting place with the Fire Kingdom to reunite the rest of their family. Then, everyone would stay at the Ice Domain until their parents were contacted and came to get them. They would be back home in two days, tops.

"So, Queen Valerie," Carson began, hoping to get some information, "you are a Ninetales, right?"

She nodded. "Yes. An ice and fairy type."

"That's incredible. I can't believe I'm not allowed to know that."

"Your kingdom's customs are very different than ours."

"You seem to know a lot about Equilibrium, but I don't know anything about the Ice Domain."

Valerie sighed. "I do not wish to give you a terrible image of your kingdom, nor do I wish to start a war, so I believe it's best I don't explain."

Carson's eyes displayed concern. "There's a lot of things I'm not allowed to know, and you've been so nice to me and my family. I want to understand the relationship between our kingdoms, and perhaps make it better one day."

The Ninetales smiled at the ground, convinced. "You are very wise, Carson. I'll tell you." She cleared her throat, ready to begin what sounded like it was a long story. "Before the Terrams had migrated here and split, we were one kingdom that lived very close to Auras, but when the Terrams split apart, we had to change locations and-"

"And there was a lot of new evolutionary discoveries, which Auras. Oblivion, and Earth rejected, so they destroyed the Terram Kingdoms." Carson recited what he read from the restricted book, receiving a questioning look from the queen. He responded by smiling sheepishly. "I might've read a book I wasn't supposed to. Do you know why our kingdoms reject the new discoveries?"

"It was only Auras," the queen explained. "With a long line of Eevee ruling over Auras Kingdom, our discoveries proved to be threatening to their throne, so they turned Oblivion and Earth against us."

Carson stared at the ground, confused. His parents had kept this from him, and he was almost certain that the perspective Equilibrium would give him in the restricted books was different. Right now, the trust he had in the queen caused him to question his own kingdom, but he needed to find out more before he made a decision.

"We've still tried to ally ourselves with your kingdom," Valerie continued, "but Equilibrium has denied us every time."

"What are the new evolutions?" Carson asked immediately.

"Regional variants, who are pokemon like myself that have taken on a different form due to our region, and mega evolution, where certain pokemon can temporarily evolve and power up."

"What-what about Lucario or a Riolu?"

Valerie smiled. "A Lucario is capable of mega evolution, and I'm sure you'd love to be able to do that one day."

Instead of smiling in excitement, he furrowed his eyebrows and stared forward. Though he knew from the moment he read the book that his parents were keeping something from him, Queen Valerie had just confirmed it. His heart sank as he realized that his parents didn't tell him about his special evolution. In fact, they didn't tell anyone in the kingdom about mega evolution. The only reason he knew about new types of evolution were because of the book and picture of the white Ninetales, but that only accounted for regional variants, as he just learned.

"Thank you for telling me, Queen Valerie," Carson thanked, respectfully nodding his head to the queen. "I promise when I get home I'll do everything I can to put the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom in good terms with Equilibrium."

Valerie laughed, thinking of another pokemon she saw knew. "You remind me of a very well known pokemon we have in our kingdom by the name of Rhetta Mason."

Familiarity rang in his ears. "Silver mentioned that name. Who's-"

Liam slowed his walk to Carson's pace, interrupting the Riolu. "Look! I think I see the others!"

The path that both the rulers and their guards had taken the Equilibrians went through the basin that sat between the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom. It also happened to run past a very important landmark for the kingdoms, which both Bolt and Silver were hoping to get the royal Equilibrians. Everything the Mimikyu and Rotom had planned was easily falling into place.

As soon as they had gotten close enough to see each other, they sprinted. Stephanie could see her brother's unusual green eyes, and he could see hers. She missed her twin as much as he missed him and as much as Liam and Leona missed each other. Everyone embraced, so relieved to see one another again, while Leonardo smiled awkwardly, yet happily, in the background, greeting them as soon as they let go of their hugs.

Then, all of their senses went numb as two, glowing green eyes lit up beside them in the basin wall. It was the same feeling that the royals had gotten before, as if they were building up energy to release in a powerful move. Nothing felt more natural to a pokemon than being in the heat of an intense battle, to not feel tired because of adrenaline rushing through veins, to give everything to win a battle. That was the feeling the seven Equilibrians felt pounding in their hearts, guiding their instincts, taking complete control of their senses. All they could focus on was what they were being guided to.

A flat, stone door with intricate designs contrasted against the carvings that surrounded it. Above the door was a pokemon with a mane that resembled the rays of the sun, one with thin, round wings that resembled the moon, and the last with a serpentine body with five frills extending off the back of its head, what the Equilibrians recognized as Zygarde. The other two they recognized from the restricted book, but couldn't name them. Two pokemon marked either side of the stone door, each with similarly styled shells on different parts of their body, but who they were completely evaded the cubs.

But, did they care? No. The only thing they cared about was that they get to whatever was calling them to come. Bolt and Silver followed closely behind them, smiling excitedly as they knew what was about to happen. The glowing green eyes from the Zygarde carving brightened, sensing the correct pokemon near, and other colors joined: white, purple, electric yellow, and red. The king of Fire, queen of Ice, and the multiple guards stepped back, recognizing exactly what was happening as they had seen it twice before, but were surprised that so many of the guardians colors were showing. The carvings were emitting a light as bright as the ones in the city.

As the Equilibrians approached the door, it slowly slid open, recognizing and accepting the life sources coming toward it. They walked into the gigantic room inside the basin wall, where a smaller carving of Zygarde was embedded in the back wall. A small waterfall flowed from the statue and into a small pool of water, but that's not what they were looking for. Led by Leonardo, they approached the waterfall when the water suddenly stopped flowing, letting them walk through the dark path and into the beautiful valley behind.

The valley was surrounded by a circle of mountains, the same one the Equilibrians saw when they first arrived. Cutting through the meadow was a medium-sized river with all sorts of evolution stones sparkling through the clear water. Still, the stones were not what they were being pulled to, but the giant rock statues in the back, which were the same pokemon as the carvings around the door.

Two of the statues were glowing. One sat in a decorative pink shell and had a pink hat with darker pink appendages that resembled hair. The other had a purple shell around its black body with a sharp horn on the top and blue hair falling by its side.

It was at this point where they split up. Stephanie and Jason went to the quadruped pokemon with the sunray mane. As soon as they touched it, the legend lit up with its proper color of white rimmed with gold, red, and a blue, starscape forehead.

Leona and Liam ran to the winged pokemon of the full moon, to which it glowed purple and gold with a purple starscape forehead.

Carson's statue, after it began to glow, was a pokemon with a large, orange plume on its head, and a yellow shell on each arm that resembled half a mask.

The statue Kai had caused to light up had two horns, appearing to be made of wood, with hooves on each arm and a tail that resembled a bell.

Leonardo caused the entire grass to glow a bright green color, showing his connection to all of the pokemon displayed in the statues. In the side of a mountain was a carving of Zygarde that also glowed upon sensing Leonardo's presence.

Once the valley became a lightshow of colors for plenty of witnesses, they dimmed down. The Equilibrians were released from their trance, snapping back into reality. They looked around at the world, struck with shock as to what had just happened, and unaware of the greatness and responsibility that had been thrust upon them.


	10. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! Back with another chapter and I hope you're all enjoying the story so far. A shout out to Aewynessa, who has been kind enough to give me great advice on both of my stories and who has a great story of their own called The Divine Chronicles: The Last Heir! If you're looking for another pokemon centered fanfic, go check it out. I think it's wonderful and the description and battle scenes are amazing!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

 **Libras**

Queen Valerie gestured to Carson and said, "Tapu Koko."

Kai: "Tapu Bulu."

Stephanie and Jason: "Solgaleo."

Leona and Liam: "Lunala."

Finally, Leonardo. "Zygarde."

The seven Equilibrians, confused and nervous, stood in the throne room of the ice castle at the earliest hours of Friday morning. The sun hadn't even come over the horizon. As soon as the new guardians had been discovered late last night, an emergency meeting had been called at the Ice Domain's castle. Queen Valerie, Bolt, Silver, the king of the Fire Kingdom, and Aris Westney were the ones who met, but Valerie looked like she was expecting more.

Carson leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, trying his best to understand the situation. "So, what you're saying is that the seven of us are what you call 'Libras'?"

King Hollow nodded. "You were chosen by the legends who protect the land to keep balance and order."

"We're not even from here," Liam pointed out with a questioning gaze. "There has to be some sort of mistake."

Aris Westney, the Umbreon, disagreed. "If the lights on the Evolutionary Ruin glowed for you, that means all of you are connected to the creators of the ruins."

"Tapu Koko? Bulu? Evolutionary Ruins?" Leona growled. "None of this makes any sense."

"The Evolutionary Ruins was the place you were just at," Aris explained calmly. "They were created by Solgaleo, Lunala, and the Tapus to test whether or not a pokemon was ready to evolve as well as detect who was given the power of the creators."

"And you said there were two more 'Libras'?" Carson stood up straight, trying to keep his thoughts from wandering.

Valerie sighed. "Yes. They possess power from Tapu Lele and Tapu Fini." She peered around Carson, looking at the ice door as if expecting someone to walk in. "One of them is fighting with our soldiers against the Ultra Kingdom, but the other should be here. We sent for her, but it seems as if she might not show."

Steph noticed the queen's sigh and her I'm-not-surprised face, but ignored it. "So the Tapus are…"

Aris jumped back in to explain. "Ah, yes. Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Fini were the shelled pokemon you saw statues of at the valley behind the ruins. While Solgaleo and Lunala only help us when it betters the entire kingdoms, the Tapus often will help a pokemon in need or tell someone when they should visit the Evolution Ruins."

"And we have the powers of these legendary pokemon?" Jason inquired. He seemed to be the most calm out of everyone.

"You are descendants of them similar to how the Wild One is Xerneas's descendant," Aris answered. "And you, Leonardo, you possess Zygarde's power."

"That means I do what?" the shiny asked. Completely opposite to Jason, he seemed the most concerned.

"It means your power creates mega stones and Z-crystals," King Hollow responded. "Throughout our kingdom, we use the power of these stones to strengthen ourselves, and since Zygarde can't be here all the time, your presence allows them to be made."

Jason's ears tilted at the sound of a new word. "Now I know what mega stones are, but Z-crystals?"

"They give a pokemon the ability to use a powerful move that is specified by type."

Carson smiled for the first time that night. "Mega evolution and powered up moves, huh? I think I could get used to that."

"Aris, if you wouldn't mind getting everything ready for training," Queen Valerie requested. "I think it would be to our advantage if we brought in Ronan as well."

Aris nodded his head. "Everything should be prepared by tomorrow."

"I'm carrying the power of a pokemon I didn't know existed until a couple hours ago," Kai yawned stressfully. "I just wanted to go home."

"We will not force you to do this, Kai," Valerie informed. "We will inform your parents that you are here as soon as we can, but it is your choice on whether you decide to take this up or not."

"What exactly are we taking up?" the curious Puppy pokemon asked. "All you've told us is that we have...powers of these legendary pokemon we've never heard of."

King Hollow gestured to the Rotom and disguised Mimikyu. "As Bolt and Silver have informed us and the previous Libras, you would be training until your evolution and after that you'll learn to use your powers."

"What exactly are these powers for?" Stephanie asked, confused on her purpose.

"Could you be more specific?" Aris inquired.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "Well, you know the Wild One. The reason she was given powers in the first place was to protect life and fight against death. She trained and learned to use her powers so that she could fight the Battle of Life and Death. She had a point to everything she was doing."

Jason smiled at his sister. He loved listening to her tell the story of their mother. In fact, he just loved listening to

"So what's our purpose?"

The Umbreon paused for a minute, almost fazed by the Eevee's wisdom. "Well, as far as we've been informed by Solgaleo and Lunala, you're simply supposed to master your powers and proceed to help all pokemon in this kingdom."

"Kinda like the Gemini before the discovery of the Wild One," Liam connected as he began to understand.

"If you're willing to take up this responsibility," Aris reminded them.

Suddenly, all eyes were on the Equilibrians. Everything that was about to happen was dependant on what they wanted. They all exchanged questioning and confused glances, unsure. They didn't want to do this. They didn't want to leave their home (what would they even do about school and homework?) and take up all this responsibility. That was something their parents did a long time ago to protect the kingdom. Their lives were normal until they had read the restricted book. All of this was happening because they broke the rules.

Actually, all of this was happening because their parents were keeping secrets of evolution from them.

"I'll gladly do it," Leonardo volunteered selflessly. He was raised to want to help others, and being a Libra was similar to being a Gemini. It was being part of a team, powers from a legendary, and just helping other pokemon. If he did this, he might be able to honor the Wild One, but most importantly: save lives. Becoming a Libra would mean he could give everyone the chance to be strong.

When the royals thought about it, this was a chance their parents got. If they didn't do it, no one else could. Each of them were chosen to have this power, so they had to be somehow worthy of it. Carson glanced around, and his friends each nodded at him, so he spoke on their behalf, "Of course we'll do it."

Though they agreed, Leonardo was the only one who was one-hundred percent sure he actually wanted to become a Libra.

"I'll get everything ready as quickly as I can." Aris nodded respectfully to the queen and left the ice throne room.

As soon as he was gone, Valerie added, "Do not worry. Everyone will remain unaware of your royal status, including Aris."

"We'll alert your parents right away and invite them to our kingdoms," King Hollow informed. "They'll be free to come, stay if they wish, and watch over your training."

"Actually," Bolt buzzed. "Silver and I were told by Solgaleo and Lunala that Equilibrium is to not be informed of the whereabouts of their royals."

"You talk with them?" Liam asked, raising an eyebrow. Normally, he would be fascinated, but now everything seemed as if it were set up against him.

"It's actually how Bolt and I managed to find you," Silver stated, her Pikachu disguise smiling.

"Of course it is," Liam sighed, not surprised at this point.

Valerie shot a shocked expression at the Rotom. "If Equilibrium finds out that we had their children, it could start a war between our kingdoms. What is their reasoning for this?"

"We don't know." Silver shrugged but her carefree look remained. "They did inform us that, should Equilibrium declare war on you, they will not win."

"We'll also do everything we can," Carson added. "This is as much our home now as Equilibrium is."

"I'd have to side with Bolt," Kai stated. "Our parents would never let us do this if they knew."

"Wait, wait, wait," Steph growled. "So we're just not going to tell our parents we're okay? Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?"

…

The Equilibrians spent the rest of the night arguing over the situation with their parents. Leonardo, Jason, Leona, and Stephanie disagreed with not informing their parents of their whereabouts, but Kai, Liam, and Carson managed to convince them to roll with it until they had a better grip on what exactly was happening. The details were a bit blurry. The one thing they did agree on was that their parents must've been so worried about them. They had been gone for over four days now, and the whole kingdom had to be in panic mode right about now.

A good night of sleep (one they needed after travelling a long distance) was followed by the news that they had the day to explore the kingdoms and get to know the pokemon. They wouldn't be announced as Libras for a little while, which would give them a chance to see the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom for what they were. The cubs decided to put the worrying out of their heads and try to enjoy where they were. No school, no responsibility, just getting to know everyday life in another kingdom. Steph and Jason continued to eat the Oran berry leaves to keep their green eyes and hide their royal identities.

Liam, Stephanie, Leona, and Kai accompanied Aris Westney after Steph had asked him if she could. Then, the green-eyed Eevee dragged them along so as not to look suspicious. Her instincts told her that there was something up with this Umbreon. It wasn't something that made her lack trust in him, but more like he was keeping something very important from them. She wanted to get to know him more, get to know what he did at the kingdom. So, they were now following him around.

Liam, however, was much better at conversing with him. "So you are Aris Westney?"

The Umbreon nodded. "Yes. I think it's safe to assume you've read my books."

"Only all of them!" Liam smiled in amazement. He was a huge fan of the fiction books written by this Umbreon. "I got to play you in A Night's Sky in my last school play."

"I played the Honchkrow," Kai added with a prideful smile. "It was my first time be-woah!"

Kai tripped over a large, white paw with three long nails and hit the stone ground. The pokemon who caused the small Rockruff to fall over stepped aside, and apologized. "Sorry 'bout that, mate." He reached down with his even bigger front paw and helped Kai stand back up. "Didn't see you there."

"Sorry, I wasn't watching where…" Once Kai met the hypnotic, gleaming red eyes, he was at a loss for words. The pokemon before him had a long, red body with white paws, a crazy white mane, and stood on two legs, despite looking like he was meant for all fours.

"Ah," the pokemon chuckled, "I remember when I was a li'l Rockruff."

Kai was speechless, but Aris had a request to make. "Glad we ran into you Logan. These four will be evolving soon, and I was hoping to gain your assistance in training them in a few days."

Despite the frightening look of his gleaming eyes, when the pokemon smiled he looked truly happy. "Anything for you, Aris. Kati and I are always at the arena whenever you need." He looked to the Umbreon's side, finding three Eevee accompanying him. "Any idea what you want to become?"

"Not...quite." Similar to Kai, Liam was confused by the pokemon that stood before him. It was another that he had never seen before.

"Whatta 'bout you?" The red-eyed pokemon nudged Kai, snapping the Rockruff out of his trance. "Midday or midnight?"

"Uh...what?"

"Do you want to be a midday Lycanroc, or a midnight Lycanroc? Ya know. Like me, or the other one?"

"Wait, I-I can evolve into you?"

The Lycanroc blinked at him, confused how Kai didn't know. "Well, yeah." He looked over his shoulder as someone called his name. "Sorry, mate. I've got to go. Kati and I will see ya soon."

Once Logan was gone, Aris chuckled at Kai. "I'm guessing you've never seen a midnight form Lycanroc in Equilibrium."

"No," Kai breathed with a half smile. "But that is so cool."

"It all depends on the time you evolve," Aris stated as he began walking to his next stop. "Eventually some Rockruff would've evolved at night and sent the word out."

"Okay, evolution, cool." Stephanie jogged to walk right beside Aris. "I want to know what you do."

Aris raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Well, besides doing whatever this is."

"You mean preparing for training?" His heart twitched. This girl before him reminded him so much of someone he knew long ago. Their personalities were so similar.

"Yeah, but what's your role at the kingdom?"

"I'm the advisor to the rulers of both the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom," he answered. "I also, as you know, write books. But, my main role is training all the Libras."

"Do you have powers?" Leona asked.

"No more than the average pokemon."

Steph raised an eyebrow, suspicious of his qualifications. "So then how do you know how to train the Libras?"

He mentally chuckled, knowing she wouldn't question him if she knew exactly who he was. "I've had experience."

"With the other Libras?" Liam guessed.

"One of them, at least. The first Libra I trained was Rhetta Mason, and we moved very quickly. She was very dedicated."

"Just changing subjects here," Steph commented, "but when exactly do we get our powers?"

Aris chuckled. "First, you need to train, then you need to complete your trial at the Evolutionary Ruins, and once you evolve you'll have complete access to your powers."

"And what exactly is this trial?" Liam questioned.

"It's different for every-"

A loud, cracking noise interrupted Aris. The sound echoed through the air and caused stomachs to lurch. Everyone in the city ducked, thinking that a projectile was coming, but no noise came after that. Heads went to the source of the noise: a blue crack in the sky, as if it were cutting space open, surrounded by pulses of purple energy. Dark clouds covered the sky, blocking out the sun and leaving a thick atmosphere. The crack pulled apart, and soft white tentacles emerged, followed by the being they were connected to.

…

Uninterested in Aris, Carson, Leonardo, and Jason were invited by a group of pokemon to come take a look around the Ice Domain. A friendly Luxray, funny Decidueye, and a sweet Lilligant were their company. They visited a few sights, including the ocean, and ended up at the lake where the Equilibrians first discovered they were Libras. By that time, a few clouds had started to cover the skies, but they stayed to talk about the kingdom.

Naturally, Carson and the Luxray split off in their own continued talk of the kingdoms. "So you've never heard of the Libras?" the Luxray asked, unaware that he was staring right at the newest Libra.

Carson shook his head. "No, never."

The electric type looked surprised. "That's really different."

The Riolu shrugged. "I guess I just live too far away."

"But even other kingdoms have heard of the Libras."

"Equilibrium doesn't-well I mean I read a book about Equilibrium that said they didn't know much about our culture." Carson choked as he nearly let the secret slip, but was able to cover it up.

"Yeah, but I still know a lot about Equilibrium. It used to be a monarchy, but now they're a representative democracy. You have the Representative Council that makes the decisions in the kingdom, and each pokemon holds the position for life."

Completely shocked about the Luxray's knowledge of his home, Carson asked, "How old are you?"

"Six, almost seven."

"And you get to know all that?"

"Well…" He paused, confused. "What do you mean by 'get to'?"

Carson bit his tongue as he slipped up again, but it made him think. _Why don't I get to know about Ice and Fire?_

"You just seem to know so much," Carson stated monotonously, hoping it would save him a second time.

The Luxray chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "I'm kind of a nerd. I like to know all about different governments and cultures and how we're different from...let's say Equilibrium."

Carson's eyes widened in curiosity, asking the Luxray to explain.

"My opinion might be biased since I live here, but I think it's one of the best forms of rule. We have kings and queen who were voted into their position, that way everyone gets a say, and they rule for life, but the position isn't hereditary. If the pokemon feel that she's not ruling properly, we can take her from her position and put in someone else. Plus, since the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom pretty much coexist, no single pokemon makes all the decisions."

"Wow," was all Carson could say.

"Carson," Luxray began seriously, "what do you want to do? As in a job?"

The Riolu chose his words carefully this time, telling the truth but not giving anything away. "I think I'm just going to be doing what my dad does." By that, he meant becoming part of the Representative Council in Equilibrium.

"But is that what you _want_ to do?" When the Luxray finished his question, he was met by confused silence from the fighting type. "Jobs here aren't hereditary. I'm expected to figure out and do what makes me happy. I can do anything I want and learn as much as I desire."

First, Carson smiled in disbelief, but it soon became a look of despair. "I can't believe how much I didn't know. I-uh. Wow, I…"

He never got the chance to finish the sentence due to the sound of something snapping clean in half. The noise was loud and hurt Carson's ears. He looked toward the source of the noise, directly above the lake, where an opening had formed in the cloudy, dark sky. Immediately, every backed away from the water's edge. A few pokemon that had been spending their day at the lake immediately fled as white tentacles emerged from the expanding opening in the sky. Curiosity and shock kept Carson and his friends from leaving, despite their danger senses going off.

The creature used its limb to pull its head through first, showing the 'hat' on its head decorated by multiple stars. It tugged and yanked, desperately pulling its body through the opening, the energy radiating from it becoming stronger. With one final pull, the beast was able to get through.

Time seemed to slow down in Carson's eyes. He immediately recognized it from Leonardo's description: Nihilego, the symbol of the Ultra Kingdom. The amount of power Carson felt with his aura was incredible, practically the same as the cloud pokemon he now knew as Cosmog.

Nihilego seemed confused, suspended in the air, and though it had no visible eyes, its head turned all around as if taking in its surroundings. Then, it seemed to pause on the Riolu. Carson's stomach dropped to the ground. He had no idea if it was looking at him, but at the same time he knew that it was focused on him, as if waiting to pounce.

It was free. Finally. The world was so full of color and light. It was happy, at first, but after it sensed the presence of three certain pokemon, Nihilego became scared. Their auras were similar to the pokemon, powerful pokemon, that it knew from long ago.

Without warning, Nihilego attacked, spraying electric bolts randomly out. Carson, frozen, didn't see the bolt until it hit him head on. The impact threw him to the ground, and the painful electric pulses in his body kept him down.

Leonardo's instincts kicked right in. While he was able to dodge, a few others weren't so lucky, including Liam and Carson. They were struck by the powerful Thunderbolt, slammed against the ground like dolls.

Without missing a beat, Leo replayed the forming of the Thunderbolt in his mind and perfectly mimicked it. Though his own bolt wasn't nearly as powerful, it hit Nihilego head on with powerful sparks flying off.

The beast remained nearly unaffected, but cried out anyway, confused. It floated backwards, crying as if it were being hurt, but not a single scratch was on its body.

Leo almost thought that something was wrong with Nihilego, but was convinced otherwise as small boulders of rock formed around it. It hurled the chunks of rock at him, and in response he rapidly fired his Hidden Power. The glowing blue orbs of dragon power collided with the Power Gem, slowing the rocks down enough for him to get out of the way. They left craters where he once stood.

After seeing how Thunderbolt failed to do much harm, he attacked with his Hidden Power. After Nihilego simply let the attack hit it, it floated away and cried again as if it were scared cub. Hidden Power did more damage than Thunderbolt, but that still wasn't much. Leo was confused by Nihilego's behavior, but had no time to react on it. While the beast was still distracted, Leo acted.

"Get out of here!" the shiny yelled to those still around. To keep Nihilego distracted, he continued to fire his dragon type orbs, surprised at how well he was doing against this supposed powerful pokemon. "Liam! Carson!"

Liam was frozen. His brain shut down, his paws shook. His heart pounded so loudly in his ears that he couldn't even hear Leo calling for him. All he could focus his mind on was the creature in front of him. Despite its friendly look while it swayed in the air, its cry sounded more like a shriek and its tentacles seemed to harshly whip back and forth. His ears fell back against his head, and his eyes widened in fear. This beast was strong, stronger than anything he saw before. Liam knew he wasn't strong. He couldn't fight.

Carson shakily gained his footing, the electricity still dancing in his muscles. His brain, also affected by the Thunderbolt, had trouble letting his eyes focus on his surroundings. He could make out the pokemon fleeing from the lakeside while the shiny pokemon bounced back and forth, firing moves he couldn't quite make out.

When his hearing finally came back to him, Leonardo's desperate voice rang in here ears. "Could use your help anytime now guys!"

Of course he wouldn't abandon a friend in need, or even all these strangers. Once his vision focused enough, he found a rock spiraling at him. The Riolu swung to the side, the rock just barely scratching his arm. He exhaled with relief, clutching his arm. No blood, but it still stung. Focusing back on the fight, he found Leonardo running out of steam.

Nihilego stopped attacking long distance and came in close, spinning through the air with its tentacles surrounded by a dark aura. Leo was desperately running away from Brutal Swing, but couldn't go any further as he was cornered in a semicircle of tall boulders.

Carson bolted, arms swinging by his side as he feet sped over the dirt. He wasn't fast enough to stop Leo from getting brutally hit by the dark type move, but he was fast enough to grab hold of Nihilego. Carson grabbed onto the back rim of the beast's hat, dragging it down before it could float away.

"Leo!" The Riolu called for backup, only to find Leonardo laying in a painful position on the ground. His eyes swiftly darted to the next available pokemon. "Liam I need your help!"

Liam could only watch. He brain wouldn't function, wouldn't tell him what to do. He couldn't remember how to form an Iron Tail or Swift. His muscles shook too much for him to even move. He was afraid.

Carson struggled, desperately trying to hold on. "You have to help these pokemon!"

"I-I," Liam stuttered. He stepped back, fear filling his chest. "I can't."

A row of stars cut through the air, poking Nihilego with sharp edges. It wasn't Liam who fired the Swift attack, but Leo. The shiny Eevee forced himself to run, despite the pain hammering his shoulder.

It was then that the beast decided it had enough. It released an electrical blast, throwing Carson off and knocking the oncoming Eevee back from where it came. It found the Riolu still standing, managing to have been missed by the Thunderbolt, though he looked about ready to collapse.

Nihilego screeched again, sounding a bit more desperate than it had before. Small sparks of psychic energy passed through its skin, forming a large, pink and purple orb in front of its body. The orb only continued to get bigger, taking in great amounts of energy. Carson could feel the deadly psychic move being formed, and knew this might be it. A fighting type was very weak against a psychic type move, and the Psywave was going to take him down hard.

Carson looked to his friends and immediately knew they couldn't help. Time seemed to slow as he saw the condition they were in. Liam was petrified, and Leo was out cold. Luckily, no one else was here to get hurt, but his friends would be. It wouldn't mean much if he got hurt himself, but his friends.

 _Maybe this is what my parents were trying to protect me from. Maybe this was why they kept information from me._ He couldn't know if this beast was mentioned in the restricted book, but if it was, they were keeping it from him for a good reason. This pokemon was way too powerful.

Carons looked at his paws, his dirt covered, cut up paws. They didn't shake. He wasn't afraid. He was okay. _I'm okay._ He shook his head. This pokemon was exactly something he shouldn't have been kept from knowing. This was why he _had_ to know. Powerful pokemon like this needed to be told about to everyone so that they could know and prepare for the worst. His parents had been trying to protect him, to make sure he didn't get hurt. They had been protecting him the wrong way for far too long. Now, that was his job, a job he needed to do right. He was a Libra.

"I need to protect them now," he whispered to himself. He closed his eyes, energy building up in his chest, and clenched his paws. He felt so small and useless in his ever-growing world. He wanted to be strong, to mega evolve, and to prove who he was. "I have to grow up. I'm-I...I am a Libra."

A slithering, multicolored beam came from Nihilego, cutting swiftly through the air. Instead of moving, instead of dodging, he put his paw up, instinct and adrenaline controlling him. His aura became something real, something tangible, snaking around his arm and forming a shield in front of his body at a simple command. The Psywave fiercely bashed the aura shield, emitting a bright burst of light and an echoing explosion, but the shield remained strong, glowing a bright blue.

The glow, however, wasn't coming from the shield, but from the Riolu behind it. Carson shone with a blue and white aura while his eyes glowed red. The figure that the aura coated began to change as the orb of energy in his heart poured out power. His legs and arms stretched to become longer, the rounded bumps on the back of his growing paws jutted out and pointed at the tops, the small blue ears filled in to fit his longer snout, and the aura-sensing appendages on either sides of his head split, doubling in number and size.

Nihilego cowered back. It was scared. It didn't want to fight. It just wanted to be free from the darkness.

The aura around him shattered, breaking into small shards that evaporated in the air. The shield that the Riolu made was now too small to protect the large, muscular Lucario. With a wave of his paw, the aura lost its shape and retreated back to him. He got into an attacking stance, gritting his teeth. He was ready to protect his friends.

Before either Carson or Nihilego could do anything more, a blur of yellow and orange shot by and slammed into the beast. When the blur slowed, Carson made out the shape of a pokemon with half of a shell on each arm and a long orange plume on its head. The claws at the ends of its arms glowed with a white aura as it slashed at Nihilego with Aerial Ace.

"Tapu Koko," he whispered in awe. Carson's heart linked with the guardian's. He felt every swipe, every time energy was released through the claws. All he did was watch, but his help wasn't needed anymore. He observed the power of Tapu Koko, the pokemon who deemed him worthy of carrying great power.

Nihilego screeched in terror, causing Carson pain. The aura he felt was overwhelming and painful, stabbing his brain with sharp needles. He clutched his head, closing one eye while attempting to keep the other on the battle between Tapu Koko and Nihilego. It was more one sided than it was an actual battle, but the intensity was high.

With one final hit, Tapu Koko knocked Nihilego back through the opening in space it came from. It squeaked one final time as the vacuum sucked it back in, and the crack sealed itself.

The Lucario didn't realize how hard he was breathing until the fighting stopped, until everything was still and quiet. He looked down at his new paws, which had healed slightly, and noticed the spike on the back. He smiled, looking at his arms and legs, feeling his ears, snout, and aura-sensing appendages. He laughed, not believing he evolved. He felt stronger. His senses felt like they were sharply heightened. The world had hundreds of more colors, his heart sent energy pulsing through his veins, his ears picked up on the sound of the small waves, and his paws felt the electricity radiating from…

Carson looked up to find Tapu Koko floating directly in front of him, very close, and took a step back. The guardian closed his eyes happily, as if grinning, and then held out a claw. The Lucario looked at the object Tapu Koko was holding. It was a thin, hexagonal, black and white stone with a diamond-shaped indentation in the center.

Carons felt a powerful aura radiating from the stone. He slowly reached out and took the object from Tapu Koko. At that moment, three bands began to glow on his wrist, painlessly searing into his fur. The outer two bands were orange while the middle was yellow. The Lucario looked questioningly at the stone, the colored bands on his wrist, and finally to Tapu Koko. The guardian bowed to his descendant, and the descendant bowed back, though he was a bit more awkward about it.

"You are strong, Carson. Never forget that."

Just as quickly as he arrived, Tapu Koko was gone, leaving Carson in amazement, yet confusion.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

 **First Impressions**

Upon seeing Nihilego appear in the sky, both the Ice Kingdom and Fire Domain were put on lockdown. Pokemon retreated to their homes while police and warriors took survey to make sure no one was lost or outside, all while keeping an eye on the Ultra Beast. From their view, Nihilego seemed to be attacking nothing, but of course they couldn't see the three small pokemon inside the crater. Then, when they rounded up the pokemon who had fled from the lake, a Luxray claimed that three pokemon were still there.

The four other Libras, Kai, Stephanie, Leona, and Jason, were brought to the Fire Kingdom throne room and forced to wait. They didn't know where Leo, Carson, and Liam were, but were worried for them.

"Does this sort of thing happen often?" Stephanie asked, sounding annoyed but simply worried.

Aris Westney shook his head. "It only happened once, about two years ago, when Cosmog was put under extreme pressure. The castle was under repairs when the scaffolding broke. It used its powers to save the pokemon, but that puts it under a lot of stress."

"So, what?" Leona asked. "Cosmog can just open portals to wherever these Ultra Beasts are."

"Only when put under extreme stress, yes," Aris answered.

Steph furrowed her eyebrows at him. Something just felt off about him. Anytime he said anything felt strange. She couldn't put her paw on it.

"So what did you do last time one of the Ultra beasts came through a portal?" Kai questioned.

"Last time one of our Libras was able to hold it off until a guardian arrived," King Hollow explained, the fire on his bone flickering with concern.

"So the other Libra's taking care of it," Jason assumed, relaxing a bit. When he saw the Umbreon and Marowak exchange grimacing glances, his worry returned. "You said that two Libras have been discovered, right? One's at the front, but is the other one doing something?"

"Currently…" The Umbreon didn't know how to let the green eyed Eevee down gently. "No."

"What?!" Leona barked. "You mean that my family could be getting hurt by an Ultra Beast, you know someone who should be protecting them, and you're not sending him or her out there to help?"

King Hollow quickly shook his head in disagreement. "It's not us, it's-"

He was glad to be interrupted by the opening of the throne room door and a voice. "They're all in here? Great. Thank you."

A Lucario stepped through the open door, stumbling over his own paw and hitting his shoulder against the door. He turned his head to his feet and then his shoulder, the noises surprising him. His paws and legs were wrapped in bandages, and he clearly looked exhausted. Liam and Leonardo followed him, but only Leonardo bore the same exhausted look. When the Lucario saw his Eevee and Rockruff friends, he smiled, showing two new fangs in his mouth.

That's when Aris recognized him. The Lucario's smile caused his stomach to drop and his heart to skip a beat. He stepped back, ears falling flat against his head. How was he here?

"Carson?" Kai called with a questioning tone.

"Oh." The Lucario looked at his new paws and chuckled. "Ha, yeah. I kinda just-"

"You evolved!" Leona shouted excitedly.

Two Eevee and Rockruff ran to Carson, Leona arriving to him and giving him the first hug. Stephanie, while excited about the Lucario, noticed Aris's fear when the fighting type entered the room, and then his relief as Kai said Carson's name. She gave him a questioning glare before running to her friend as well, and he noticed it. However, Aris pushed it out of his mind, thinking he must've imagined it.

"It was amazing, too," Leonardo added. "Thought he was making an Aura Sphere, but then a shield appeared in front of him."

"How does it feel?" Jason asked with curious eyes.

"Weird," he answered, opening and closing his fist. "I keep running into things, and everything's louder."

"You're not quite used to being a Lucario yet," Aris observed with a slightly shaking voice that only Steph picked up on. He cleared his throat, ignoring the signals in his brain telling him that this Lucario was familiar. "You're still walking as if you're a small Riolu. But don't worry. You'll get used to it."

Leona's eyes strayed from Carson to her brother. "Liam?" He looked up and met her eyes, but his face remained grim. "What's wrong?"

Liam shook his head and focused back on the ground. He couldn't talk, not after everything that happened. His mind was still focusing on what happened, on the way Nihilego moved and screeched, on how powerful it was. It still scared him.

Leonardo explained how him, Carson, and Liam had found themselves caught at the lake when Nihilego appeared. He went into details about Carson's evolution, and how Tapu Koko appeared to send Nihilego back to where it came he left out was how Liam simply stood back and watched, but that was only because he didn't notice Liam had tried to help.

Carson held out the stone that Tapu Koko gave to him. "He even gave this to me." Unlike Carson, the others didn't feel the power radiating from it. Still, it intrigued them and caught their interest.

Aris smiled in awe and interest when he saw the stone. "That's a Z-stone. Normally a pokemon doesn't receive it until they've completed their trial, but Tapu Koko must think you're something special if he gave it to you himself."

"So we can evolve without completing the trial?" Leona inferred.

The Umbreon nodded. "Well of course, but you won't receive your Z-stone until you go to the Evolutionary Ruins. Unless, you receive it from a legendary like Carson. I would assume the latter, considering that your Z-power capabilities are beyond the normal pokemon."

Carson examined the diamond indentation in the stone. "And this Z-stone does what?"

"After it's made into a bracelet, a Z-crystal will fit right there," Aris explained, pointing to the indentation. "With the stone you can easily get a Z-crystal at the Evolutionary Ruins and even your mega stone."

"Tapu Koko must think very highly of you," King Hollow mentioned sincerely.

Carson smiled again, keeping the words Tapu Koko told him in mind. The tapu believed he was strong. The tapu believed in him. He had to do this, to be a Libra and protect other pokemon.

"So where was the other Libra?" Jason brought the topic back up, not ready to drop it. "You told us one is on the way back from the front line, but why didn't the other one show up to deal with Nihilego?"

Aris sighed. "We don't want to speak badly of her, so it might be best not to tell you."

"Well if we're all supposed to be a team now we need to know about each other," Leona stated, also upset that her family was in danger.

That's when Steph caught sight of the colored bands seared on Carson's left paw. "I've seen those bands before," she stated, causing everyone to look at Carson's wrist. "The princess of the Ice Domain had the same ones, except they were different colors."

Again, Aris and King Hollow exchanged grimacing glances.

Steph laughed in disbelief. "The _princess_ of the Ice Domain is the Libra who didn't go help my family. They could've died, and she did nothing. Did you even tell her that Nihilego appeared?"

"We tried but…" Aris was at a loss for words. He didn't want to speak badly of Kara. "At first, we were supposed to be meeting everyday, but she never came. Now, I try to meet with her at least once a week, but she doesn't go. Most of the time, no one even knows where she is."

"So she just walks around here, doing her own thing with no regard to anyone's safety?" Leona snorted, rolling her eyes.

"She might come to training tomorrow since the last of the Libras have been revealed," Aris suggested.

Stephanie shook her her. "From what you said, it sounds like she isn't going to show."

There's nothing we can do now," King Hollow sighed, resting his bone against the side of his throne. "We'll have to wait until tomorrow."

Steph rolled her eyes, but grumbled in agreement.

"Please, get a good night's rest. All of you."

…

Upon arriving at the Evolutionary Ruins, the seven heard a strong, female voice from beyond the small waterfall. "So the rest of them, all seven? All at once?"

The water stopped flowing long enough for them to walk through. As soon as the morning light in the valley reached their eyes, they saw two pokemon. One was Aris. The other was a skinny, muscular bipedal pokemon with three red claws on each paw and foot, sleek gray fur, and a red, voluminous mane tied back by a teal band. On her right wrist was a Z-stone bracelet, and on her left wrist were three bands, the outer two a light pink and the middle a darker shade of pink.

While the seven amateur Libras were eager to greet the experienced one, the Zoroark raised a questioning eyebrow at them. "Them? Really?"

Stephanie's eyebrows furrowed and her ears rose in surprise. The Zoroark's tone was not what she expected. She half expected the other one, Princess Kara, to act as if they weren't important, but that was only because Kara didn't help her family when they were in danger. The Zoroark in front of her looked friendly, but based on the tone of her voice, Steph could tell they weren't going to get along.

"That's what I was trying to tell you," Aris half-laughed. "Obviously, they got here first."

"How can they be the Libras?" Her voice was full of disbelief and confusion. "They're not Terrams, they're not from here, and this isn't their home."

"The statues and earth glowed for them, Rhetta. The King and Queen saw it, as did several guards."

"Well, Rhetta," Leona inhaled, attempting to shake off the rough start between them, "I'm Leona, Libra of Lunala's power."

Rhetta sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I apologize. It's nothing against you. I'm not insulting you or your capabilities. It just doesn't make sense why the Tapus of our home would choose foreigners to guard us from the Ultra Beasts, especially when you're all cubs."

"Actually," Steph chuckled, shaking her head. Jason recognized his sister's irritation in her body language. "We're all six, so not cubs."

The dark type nodded and shrugged."Right, well, you're technically not cubs, but until you evolve, you technically still are."

She quickly glanced over the small crowd of mostly Eevee, catching a glance of the unusually small Rockruff and the slim, yet not too skinny Lucario. Her curious eyes paused on him, taking in his features. Though standing wasn't physically hard, he made it seem so. His shoulders were awkwardly pulled back in attempt to stand up straight, and his muscles were tense in the effort it took to hold himself up. It was obvious that his mind wasn't used to the new body. Despite that fact, his kind red eyes and sweet smile brought out a half-grin from her as well. He hadn't said a word, but the aura he gave off was jovial.

"Well, most of you are," Rhetta added, giving a nod to the fighting type. "You must've been the one who fought off Nihilego, and who earned Tapu Koko's colors."

"Uh, yeah, yes," Carson stuttered. He held out his paw. "I'm Carson."

She stared at his red eyes with her light blue ones, getting a feel for his presence. The Zoroark got a certain feeling from him but was unsure of what it was. Something about him felt different, and she stared curiously into his eyes for a few seconds. She didn't shake paws with many pokemon, and those whose did were not from outside her kingdoms. Frankly, due to Terram history, she didn't like outsiders that much, though she hadn't met one off the battlefield until now.

Carson was about to pull his paw back when she extended her own paw and shook his. "Rhetta Mason."

Aris smiled, recognizing the respect Rhetta showed the newly evolved pokemon.

The rest of the introductions were made, but Rhetta didn't extend her paw to anyone else. She made note of all of them, especially Leona and Stephanie. They were the only two girls out of the seven pokemon, and, being a girl herself, she was a big advocate for female power. What also caught her interest were the green eyes of both Stephanie and Jason, who also happened to look very similar. She was able to discard the green eyes, assuming they might take a medication with a side effect, but she knew they had to be related, as did Leona and Liam.

"We're cousins," Stephanie answered, a little too quickly.

Rhetta knew a lie when she heard one. The missing royals from Equilibrium just before the arrival of seven unknown pokemon at the Terram Kingdoms? Those two events were definitely linked, and if they were all Libras, they all needed to trust each other. Right now, though, they were far from that. Rhetta trusted their presence in her kingdoms because she could tell they didn't mean any harm, but that was it. If they were the missing royals, Fire and Ice could end up in a war with Equilibrium.

So, for now, Rhetta pretended to buy their lie. She would have to do her own investigating later. Besides, watching them train with Sir Ronan ought to be fun. She remembered how loathsome and tiring those first days were.

A Greninja, tall and serious, walked into the Valley, eyes focused on the Equilibrians. He glared at them, causing them to freeze. They could sense that he meant business. "These are the other seven?" he asked, not impressed.

"All of them," Aris replied to Ronan.

He nodded. "Good. We'll get started right away. Rhetta!"

"Good morning, Sir Ronan," the Zoroark replied with a pleased smile.

"Has Kara decided to join us today?"

Rhetta shook her head. "I tried as soon as I got back, but it doesn't look like it."

"That's too bad, but we'll have to go one without her. You ready to be the one watching instead of participating?"

"Of course, sir."

Sir Ronan commanded the Libras, excluding Rhetta, to line up. As he paced in front of them, his webbed hands were folded behind his back and the end of his tongue hung down on his back. The Greninja was taller than Carson, and his aura intimidated them.

"Ten laps around the Valley. All of you." Confused by his command, they simply exchanged glances. "Did I stutter! Move it!"

His sudden sharp voice caused the pokemon to jump, and they immediately began running, tracing the edges of the mountain. Stephanie and Leonardo were closer to the front, tailed by everyone else. Carson trailed at the end due to his longer legs, but still kept up.

After one lap, their hearts were beating crazily. The perimeter of the Valley was long, but it wasn't anything they couldn't handle. Then, when they began on the fourth lap, they were exhausted. Only Steph and Leo kept going at the same pace while everyone else slowed. At first, the two Eevee were competing for the lead, but now they were competing with themselves just to keep running.

When they finally finished, their legs were wobbly, their throats were dry, and they gasped for breath. Ronan simply chuckled. "Push-ups, now."

"Are you kidding?" Leona coughed, sweat rolling down her face. "At least let us breathe."

"Push-ups. _Now_!" he commanded sternly.

"How many?" Steph asked, getting irritated with Ronan.

"As many as I say."

Everyone sighed, but got into push-up position and began repeatedly bending and extending their arms. They were slow, mostly due to the ten laps that left them drained of energy. While they did their push-ups, the Greninja stood in front and lectured.

"My name is Ronan, but you will call me sir or Sir Ronan. I don't like complaining, so you better shut your yaps and do what I say. Under no circumstances will you interrupt me, or else it's ten laps around the Valley. If you think you're strong, trust me, you're not. Water breaks will be once every thirty minutes and lunch will be everyday at twelve-thirty. I want everyone hydrated and fueled. Any questions?" He looked at the seven pokemon, who slowly did their push-ups without a sound. "Good. Now I want another two laps, backwards run, around the Valley. Then grab some water and meet me back right here! Go!"

They wasted no time, not wanting another ten laps as punishment. After just a few minutes, their intimidation of him turned to irritation. They reminded him of Mrs. Sandomir, only instead of homework he gave physical punishments. Just the warm up was more exhausting than their actual training back at home.

When they finished, every stood in line in front of Ronan, breathing heavily and wanting to sit down.

Ronan called Rhetta and an Eevee up to stand opposite to each other. "Name and signature move," Ronan requested.

"Uh, Jason, sir. Could you, uh, please clarify what you mean by signature move?" He swallowed, unsure of what exactly to say next.

"Tell me which one of your moves you can perform the best."

"Right, uh, my signature move is Shadow Ball."

"Show me."

"Uh." Jason glanced to Rhetta, questioning if Ronan's command was to shoot at her.

"What are you waiting for?" Ronan questioned, letting his irritation show through the tone of his voice.

"Aim at me Jason. I can take it," she assured.

He nodded and spread his paws out, evenly distributing his weight. This was his first impression, not only for his new teacher Ronan, but for Aris and Rhetta as well. To add on, he was the first of all his family and friends to show what he had. He wanted to prove to his teachers and new teammate that he at least had potential and would be a valuable asset to the team. For not being on the Battle or Bot teams, he considered himself to be a little strong. Now was his time to find out.

He inhaled and his heart rate increased, sending energy rushing through his veins. It gathered at the front of his mouth, shaping and growing into a deep purple sphere that cackled with purple sparks. Once fully charged, he aimed and shot it at Rhetta. It spiraled through the air, releasing small flecks of purple dust as it flew. Before reacting, Rhetta examined the form and power. She flicked her wrist and her paw became coated with a white aura. With one slash from her Aerial Ace, the ghost type move shattered into particles of energy and dissipated into the air. The Zoroark pulled her paw close, shaking off the pain with a surprised look. Normally, destroying an attack did nothing, but that Shadow Ball really hurt.

Sir Ronan continued to call up the Equilibrians. It gave them a chance to rest and him a chance to see what they were made of. Rhetta was also able to test her new teammates' powers. Liam's Swift left much room for improvement, Kai's Fire Fang left quite a sting but could've been better, Leona's Quick Attack was near perfect, Leonardo's dragon type Hidden Power was phenomenal, and Stephanie's Iron Tail left Ronan with interest. What really surprised him was Carson's signature Endure move, considering it was defensive instead of offensive.

After showing Ronan what they had, he finished the day by making them run more, go through basic drills, and do more push-ups. As he promised, they took plenty of water breaks and had a small lunch of Oran and Cheri berries. This training was more physically challenging than anything they had before. It left them drenched in sweat and with trembling muscles, and their session didn't end until the sun was about to set. Before they were dismissed, however, Ronan had a few words to say.

"First impressions are everything," he barked while they stood in line. "They determine how a pokemon thinks about you from then on, and it's really hard to change that. Right here, right now, I'm going to tell you what impression you've made on me."

"I remember what he said to me," Rhetta whispered to Aris, a half-smile forming on her face.

"I remember not agreeing," Aris replied, raising an eyebrow. "His impression was much different than mine."

"I think they were both right, though."

First up was Leonardo. Ronan stared down at the shiny Eevee, recalling the memories of the Hidden Power. "Good technique, but you need more power."

Liam's Swift, though not too powerful, was perfectly formed. "There's room for improvement, but not terrible."

"Powerful and unique move for your size and species. You may be small, but you definitely pack a punch." Kai knew he was a little smaller than most Rockruff, not by a lot, but enough to notice. It was something he was a little insecure about, but Ronan's comment on his strength helped him feel more confidant.

While the Greninja gave somewhat of a complement to everyone so far, Stephanie was not so lucky. "Overconfident, sloppy, and weak."

Unlike her female cousin, Leona received praise. "Impressive Quick Attack. I expect the same effort with your other moves."

Ronan could tell the Lucario had evolved fairly recently, due to his constant "Strong defense, something most pokemon lack. Don't expect me to ease up on you because you've already evolved. If Tapu Koko gave you that Z-stone, you still have to prove to me why."

Finally, Jason: "Very strong. You know exactly what you're doing."

Rhetta smiled. "You may not have agreed, Aris, and I have no idea if Ronan really believed what he said, but that wasn't the point."

…

Liam emerged from the bathroom, rubbing his drenched head with a soft towel. "He's not as bad as I thought he would be."

"Easy for you to say," Stephanie groaned, planting her face in a pillow. "He didn't call you weak and sloppy."

"I'm sure he didn't mean it like that," Jason reassured, placing a comforting paw on his sister's shoulder.

"He complimented all of you except me."

"He didn't compliment me so much as he said I wasn't terrible," Liam pointed out.

"I'm on the varsity Battle team and you act!" She wasn't angry at him, but more herself. After realizing what she just said, she sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

"It's okay." Liam smiled in attempt to cheer her up. "I don't know why he said that either. You're probably the best fighter out of all of us."

"Why do you think we work so well together?" Carson asked with a grin on his face. "That was his _first_ impression of you. You can prove to him that he was wrong."

"I want to be strong, you know?" She chuckled sadly at herself. "Mom was strong, really strong, and she still is. I just feel like everyone expects me to do something great like her, and being a Libra is my chance to be like her."

"You know you don't have to be like Mom, right sis?"

"But I want to be. Mom was so strong and I want everyone to think I'm strong too. Now I really can be like her. I can have the same powers from a legendary! I can be like a Gemini." After seeing their unenthusiastic faces, she sighed. "It's different for you guys. You don't want to be like your parents."

"Are you kidding?" Carson laughed. "My mom evolved into a Gallade! Everyone expected me to do something great like that. Now I can mega evolve and you think that's going to be easy? I have to prove that I can do this."

Steph rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless. "Let's do it together, then."

"He called me small," Kai pointed out with a shrug. "If that helps."

"It doesn't," Leona teased. "What would help is finding the princess and getting her to training."

"What's with her, anyway?" Kai questioned. "You guys were getting attacked and she didn't show up."

"Well, Rhetta didn't either," Leonardo defended.

"Rhetta was at the front line of war fighting the Ultra Kingdoms," Liam pointed out. "I saw the princess the moment I walked into the throne room."

"Maybe there's more to her," Jason suggested. He liked to think that every pokemon had a reason for doing what they did.

"I hope so," Leo sighed.


	12. Chapter 11

**Welcome back! I hope you're enjoying the story! This chapters is one of my favorites so far, so I sincerely hope you love it as much as I do!**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

 **Kara Novoa**

Swimming cleared his mind and lightened his soul. Everything about the water felt natural and right.

 _"You're Princess Kara, right?"_

The thoughts pushed him to go. His paws glided through the water, fueled by his thoughts. Every few strokes, he turned his head to the side and inhaled.

 _The white Ninetales gave him an uncaring expression. "I'm Kara Novoa, yes. You're one of the new ones, right?"_

 _"Yes," Jason answered, rubbing his paws against the floor. "I'm also the Libra of Solgaleo."_

 _"I presumed so." She seemed indifferent, continuing to talk to him in the same tone and manner. "Seems a little suspicious that seven foreigners show up at our doorstep at the same time the last Libras are revealed. So, what did you need from me?"_

As training continued on, one Libra had yet to show. It was a few days ago when he first met Princess Kara. It was early in the morning, as the Ninetales preferred to leave before anyone else rose. He woke up early that day to make sure he could talk to her.

 _"I wanted to know if you would come by the Valley today. Maybe train us or train with us?"_

 _"I'll pass, but thank you." She turned and began walking down the hall, leaving Jason in confusion._

 _The Eevee ran to catch up with her. "Wait, why? You're a Libra, aren't you?"_

After what felt like hours, he continued to keep his pace in the water. His thoughts kept him focused, letting him hit the rock wall and turn back around without missing a beat. Despite his meeting with Kara being a few days ago, he constantly thought about it.

 _The ice type nodded. "Of course. You can see the bands, can't you?"_

 _"Those are Tapu Fini's colors, aren't they?"_

 _"The water type Land Spirit, yes. You're observant."_

 _"So why won't you come train with us?"_

 _She glanced down at his curious green eyes, immediately knowing they weren't his natural eye color. "I'm sure Ronan told you why."_

Ronan was a different kind of pokemon. He had no problem voicing his opinion, nor did he mind giving you ten laps if you disagreed. Luckily, Jason had stayed quiet, but his sister, Kai, and Leona had to learn the hard way. They disliked him as their trainer, but he was a fun pokemon to be around and talk to. He seemed to care very much about their well-being, both physical and mental. He felt differently toward Kara Novoa, however.

 _"He said you don't care about your kingdom, that you're selfish, and that he has no idea why Tapu Fini chose you." Jason quoted the Greninja accurately, saying it carefully so as not to accuse her. "Aris said that's what everyone thinks, but he still has hope."_

 _"Well," she breathed, "there's your answer."_

 _He stopped in his tracks, surprised by her answer. She continued to walk away, seemingly not caring. But Jason knew better. "I don't believe any of that."_

 _She stopped, paused, and turned to face him with an impressed smile below her icy blue eyes._

When Jason finished his laps around the lake, he climbed out and shook his body. Water flew in every direction and his fur was left sagging to the side. Stephanie followed second, and then the others with Leona in last. They stood in line in front of Ronan, waiting for his command. After over a week of training, totaling to two weeks exactly away from home, they learned to listen so as not to get extra laps.

Sir Ronan stared at them for a few seconds, analyzing their progress over their training course. He simply sighed and rubbed his eyes. "This is going to be much harder than I anticipated."

The Equilibrians mentally questioned him, but said nothing.

"They've made great progress," Aris voiced. From what he saw, the new Libras were moving fast. "Their endurance and defensive techniques have improved in such a short time."

"Those are fairly easy to improve, Aris. All is takes is simple training and conditioning." The Greninja's mouth twitch in annoyance, but he calmed himself. It wasn't particularly anyone's fault. "You train them to use their powers after they evolve, but getting them to the point of evolution isn't just physical. They each have a mental block."

Rhetta furrowed her eyebrows at the words. She never remembered having a mental block, nor did she remember having him help her pull it down. "How did you get rid of my block?"

"Yours was simple. You conquered it yourself through training." He used a webbed hand to gesture to the Equilibrians. "Their attack is the same, if not worse, and they're no closer to evolving."

"I evolved, sir," Carson spoke quietly, hoping he wouldn't get another ten laps.

"Yes you did Carson. I believe that since you've already evolved, have received Tapu Koko's colors, and are the only one making any progress, you should go on to train with Aris and Rhetta on controlling your powers."

The Lucario smiled. "You got it."

"As for the rest of you, we're going to individual training now. I'll be able to get more strength out of you if I work with one or two of you at a time for a few hours as opposed to all of you all day."

"So we're splitting up?" Steph surmised with a disapproving glance. "But we always learn together, fight together, especially me and Carson."

"Not anymore," Ronan specified. "The rest of you are in desperate need of one-on-one training, especially you Stephanie. I want to see you at sunrise tomorrow morning and we work until eleven. Liam, Kai, and Leona, you three from eleven-thirty to three. Leonardo and Jason, three to six. All of you better get some rest tonight."

…

"He said it again!" Stephanie growled through a mouthful of food. "I have been working harder than ever before and it's still not enough for him!"

"Well, tomorrow you'll get a chance to show him," Kai stated, taking a big bite of his jelly sandwich.

"And why am I spending five hours early tomorrow training while you two only get three?"

"Maybe we don't need as much help?" Jason suggested with a shrug, knowing that Steph wouldn't like that response.

"I don't get it." Steph's voice was harsh with a hint of anger. She was so confused as to why Ronan thought she wasn't good enough. "I trained everyday. All I did was school, homework, training, and battles. I beat all of you almost every time we battled, yet Ronan said I was the weakest."

"Well," Leonardo squeaked out, "don't get mad, but maybe you're...not as strong as you think you are."

His words brought crazed looks his way. Any chance that Steph had to battle one of them, she always won. However, they never fought until someone fainted. Leonardo entertained the thought that maybe if they went all the way, she really wouldn't win.

"What makes you think that?" Liam inquired, desiring to know what Leo thought of Steph's skills.

"I've seen the varsity Battle team train before. It's not that good." He shrugged, the corner of his mouth lifting as if unimpressed. "You guys focus on attack and power, but that's not the whole point of battling."

"If you attack hard, powerful, and fast, you'll win a battle fast," Stephanie recited from experience. "That's how I win all my battles."

"Because that's how all Battle teams in Equilibrium train," Leo chuckled in disbelief. "You're all taught that attack and strength will win a battle, so all of you battle that way and of course the one who attacks faster and stronger will win. Jason swims, so he trains with his mother, the Wild One. She knows how to fight properly, which means Jason has learned how to fight properly, too."

Steph glanced to the ground, starting to rethink her strength.

"Honestly," Leo continued, "I bet if Jason battled you right now until someone fainted, he would win."

The female Eevee nodded. "It...it makes sense."

His ears flattened against his head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I just wanted you to see why-"

"No, it's-it's okay."

Leo shook his head. "You're not bad, not at all. You just need some work on proper form and defense. That's all."

"I know," she smiled. Her confidence didn't waver. She was simply given a new perspective and a new reason to become better.

"Mom's a great teacher," Jason pointed out. "She would have no problem helping you."

"Aunt Abrielle." Leona forced a laugh. "Mom, Dad, Uncle Cyle. We've been gone for two weeks now. They've gotta be so worried."

"They're probably looking for us," Kai added in a soft whisper.

"Yeah," Carson sniffed. He looked at the new spike on his paw. "Dad and Mom. They would've really wanted to see me evolve. I-I really wanted them there."

The clock on the wall rang six times, alerting everyone to the time. It was loud compared to the silence that fell over the Equilibrians. Though six in the evening was normally the time they ate, they were losing their appetites.

"Guys, what are we doing?" Liam asked, his voice full of doubt. "Being Libras? What does that even mean? What's our endgame? Is there some sort of fight we're preparing for?"

"The Ultra Beasts," Jason mumbled. "Aris told me that the wormhole opened spontaneously without Cosmog, so now there's that to deal with. It's never happened before but I guess it's something we're training to fight. But, even then, we still have no idea if it's going to be a reoccurring thing."

"But why can't we go home? Why can't we tell our parents we're here?"

"Liam's got a point," Leo agreed. "Surely Equilibrium would have to understand what's at stake here. We should talk to Silver and Bolt about it."

"We have to talk about more than that." Steph looked around to the longing, questioning gazes of her brother and cousins. "We've all been a little out of it since the evolution test, and being taken from home hasn't helped, but I think we need to talk about it."

Jason's ears rose in realization that the clock rang just minutes ago. He had somewhere to be by six-fifteen. "We do, we really do. But I have to go. I'll be back in a few hours, but don't talk about it without me!"

The Eevee ran out of the room in a haste, leaving everyone else with confusion.

…

Carson adjusted the new gear on his arm, still getting used to the feel. On his right bicep was a thin, red and blue-white, metal bracelet. In the center was a round, colorful stone with a twist design at its center. On his wrist was his Z-stone bracelet, newly fitted with a brown Z-crystal.

"It feels like so much weight." Carson shook his arm out. Luckily, the bracelets were a perfect fit and didn't rattle or shake against his arms.

Across the grass field, Rhetta stood with her own Z-stone bracelet bearing a dark black crystal. "I felt the same in the beginning, but you get used to it. Try your aura shields again."

Carson nodded and obeyed. He held out his arm, aura rapidly snaking around it, and gathered his energy in a ball on his paw. At the same speed, Rhetta had formed and launched a Shadow Ball his way, forcing him to speed up. He closed his paw, commanded the aura with his mind, and it formed a shield just as the Shadow Ball collided with it. As the small smoke cloud cleared, Carson's perfectly rounded, glowing blue shield remained intact, protecting the Lucario.

The aura retreated back to his paw and he stood proudly, smiling with his mouth wide open in awe.

"You're getting much better," Aris complemented, though from his tone he seemed to be a little out of it. "Think you can try mega evolution?"

Aris had seen Carson in another pokemon before. The excitement in his eyes after his first success at controlling his powers. The hours of training without stopping. The fire in his soul, wanting to grow stronger and be better. Even the bonding with a teammate. Aris had seen it all.

Carson, sweating yet smiling energetically, responded, "Absolutely. What do I need to know?"

"This is where I come in." Ronan stepped out of his viewer position on the sidelines, mega stone glistening on his wrist.

"So Greninja can mega evolve too?" Carson's eyes sparkled as he compared the two orbs. "That's fantastic."

"Well, so far I'm the only Greninja that can." Ronan held his arm in front of his chest. "But lucky for you, it's how I can teach you to evolve."

"Great! Let's get started." Carson dropped into a fighting position, paw on his mega stone.

"Slow it down, Lucario. Mega evolution isn't like learning a new move. You don't just jump right in, and there is no ready position."

He slumped his shoulders and stood up straight, grudgingly agreeing to follow Ronan's orders.

"First, you have to understand that mega evolution drains you, not just physically, but emotionally and mentally. If you're not careful, if you're not responsible, it's entirely possible that you could hurt yourself."

Carson looked away for a second, focusing his dark red eyes on the Tapu Koko statue. He soaked in the seriousness of mega evolve, understood the risks, but kept his determination. His attention went back to Ronan, and he nodded in understanding. "I'll do my best, and I'll take it slow."

"Good. Now first, you've got to find your anchor."

Carson knew exactly what was keeping him standing in the constantly changing rivers of life. After that, going through the steps seemed pointless (especially the breathing exercises), but he pulled through. He knew better than to stray from the basics, and that made finally getting to mega evolution much more satisfying.

Much like his change from a Riolu to a Lucario, his body became surrounded in a blue-white aura once he touched the stone. The stone dissolved into his body and its power flooded his veins, causing him to grow and change. Once the aura broke apart, his fur was decorated with intricate black designs and his paws were stained red. His tail had gone from a thin streak of blue to a bushel of cream fur.

The new power shook his core, making him feel like he was going to fall apart and lose his grip. His paws trembled, his stomach twisted around, and his brain pounded against his skull. His heart beat faster, producing the new power at dangerous levels. It hurt, but it felt good.

He thought he could take it, that he could control it. The pain faded away within a matter of seconds. After that, it wasn't half-bad, nor was it terribly hard to control. The blood pumping through his veins carried the energy from his heart to his paw, creating a sparkling Aura Sphere that was much too big to be safe.

Ronan stepped away, gesturing for Rhetta and Aris to do the same. "Carson," he called carefully.

He stared at his Aura Sphere, seemingly hypnotized. "Amazing."

"I think that's enough for right now."

Carson's head snapped to the side, gleaming red eyes focusing on the blurry image of the Greninja. "Why? I have it under control."

Ronan nodded, appearing calm, but in his chest his heart was beating fast. He wanted to appear calm so that Carson would stay calm. "For now you do. This is your first time with mega evolution, so please take it slow."

His vision began to blur, and he lost his ability to see color. His consciousness seemed to fade in and out, and his thinking process became jumbled. Carson was trying to convince himself that he was fine, that this power wasn't affecting him, but he knew it wasn't true.

 _This isn't strength._ Carson inhaled through his nostrils, closing his eyes. _It's too much right now._ He opened his eyes and looked at his Aura Sphere. It was too large to be safe for those around him. If he lost control of it, he could hurt someone. His eyes strayed to everyone around him. _Even Aris and Rhetta know it's out of hand. You've got to know when to stop, and the time to stop is now._

Carson cutoff the energy flow to his Aura Sphere, keeping his hold on it while it dissipated into the air. As soon as it was gone, he fell apart in a flash of light. The mega stone formed back inside the band on his arm, and the regular Lucario collapsed.

…

"Left at the fountain and...behind the three Oran berry bushes."

Jason followed the directions perfectly. He was led to the back of the castle where the gardens were, just behind the mountains surrounding the Valley where he trained, around the Milotic fountain, and to a small cave behind three berry bushes. The opening was fairly big, yet small enough to be concealed by simple bushes.

 _"If you want to know who I am, why I do what I do, I'll be waiting there."_

What she was trying to do, he didn't know. She was always off on her own. Know one ever knew where she was. Her motifs, however, sparked curiosity in his mind. He knew better. She wasn't the way everyone believed she was. She was a Libra. He was a Libra. They were both chosen for a reason.

He followed the small, dark tunnel for at least ten minutes, aiming toward the light he saw at the end. When he finally exited the tunnel, a warm sunset light greeted him.

"Glad you came."

His attention followed Kara's sweet, soothing voice to the shade of a palm tree. She laid by the unnaturally thick bark, where it seemed as if two feet were extending from the trunk. After his eyes followed the trunk to the top, he found three Exeggutor heads. His eyes widened in both curiosity and surprise, and when he glanced back at the white Ninetales, several purple Meowth and black Rattata were gathered by her side.

"Are those...regional variants of Meowth and Rattata?" Jason tilted his head at the pokemon. "And Exeggutor?"

Kara chuckled. "Yes. They're wild pokemon who live here."

The Eevee's eyes took in the surroundings. Meadows of flowers and grass covered the ground, while actual palm trees swayed in the wind. Wild pokemon danced around, playing games with one another. "Where are we?"

The ice type stood up and stretched. "We're on the other side of a tourism spot just outside the kingdom. The Drilbur dug the tunnels for me so I could easily get out of the Ice Domain without complaints from anyone. There's more than just that one."

She turned and gestured for him to follow, leading Jason to another cave in the hill he had emerged from. This one was bigger, and he could smell fresh water at the other end.

"Why would you want to leave home so often?" Jason asked.

Without answering his question, she ventured into the cave while calling back, "Walk and talk."

As Jason followed, his eyes couldn't adapt to the amount of darkness. He blindly stumbled through the cave, relying only on Kara's voice to guide him.

"I love to explore," she stated. "I don't like being a princess."

"Do you like being a Libra?"

The corner of her mouth twitched upward. "Ronan told you all those things about me, and I can assume you're upset that I didn't go to fight Nihilego, yet you still didn't believe I was a bad pokemon."

Jason shook his head. "No one's a bad pokemon. Sure, they make mistakes, but I'd like to believe that everyone has their reasons. Just like you do."

This time, Kara's smile filled her face. "You should feel special, Jason."

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to tell you something I don't tell anyone. I'm going to tell you who I am, and why I act the way I do."

"Good, because I want to understand."

Only one other pokemon had said that to her, but with a tired and uncaring tone, unlike Jason's curious and almost loving tone. "My mother became queen before I was born, so I never knew what it was like to be a regular pokemon who got to run around outside, battle, and explore new places. I spent my life learning to act properly for a position I would never obtain."

Jason took in her words carefully, his mind quickly examining the speech.

"I snuck away any chance I could, and I went to the battle arena. But a Vulpix with white fur is easily caught, and I was forbidden from battling."

"But?"

"But I refused to be a princess, so I kept sneaking away, I kept battling. I stopped upholding my responsibilities as a princess, which, trust me, didn't mean very much." She brushed her fur over her head, already becoming irritated with everyone involved in the story. "Then, one day after I snuck out, I found pokemon from the Ultra Kingdom trying to sneak into Ice. I tried to fight them off, but there were five of them and one of me, so naturally I didn't fair too well."

Jason smiled in amazement, saying, "And then Tapu Fini came, right?"

Though she couldn't see him, she looked in his general direction with a raised eyebrow. "How did you know?"

"That's what Carson told me happened with him."

"Carson?"

"Another Libra, but he said that when he was fighting Nihilego and losing, that he evolved and Tapu Koko came."

"Happened to me the same way," Kara stated. "Tapu Fini appeared, and I thought she was going to fight them off, but instead she handed me an Ice Stone and told me 'Be who you are. Never let anyone make you something that you're not' and disappeared immediately after."

"So you fought them off, and Tapu Fini gave you a Z-stone?"

"Yes."

"But you still don't train with Aris or Ronan?"

"I never liked having a teacher that told me how to do something. I enjoy figuring things out for myself, and because I didn't train, everyone thought that I didn't deserve to be a Libra."

Jason nodded. "I think you deserve it, but I also think that maybe you should come train with us. None of us can get stronger without some help."

"I'll see. If I decide to I won't come every time, but a few times a week."

As they followed the turning tunnel, a dim light illuminated in the distance. The sun was already going down, leaving little light. The sound of cascading water echoed through the cave. As they arrive to the edge of the tunnel, Kara blasted a wave of ice from her mouth, providing a pathway through the waterfall. When Jason crossed over the ice bridge, he found a familiar sight.

"You were the one who saved us that night," he breathed with surprise and realization. He gazed at the road that he and his friends had spent an entire day climbing. Running to the edge of the cliff, he found the wreckage of the cart that had tumbled over the side.

"Sorry for sending you down there," she apologized. "I didn't mean to hit the cart so hard, but I thought the royals could use some help."

He didn't notice her allusion to his royal status. "How did you know we would be here?"

"It was by chance, really. When the Ultras were heading over to Equilibrium, I overheard them discussing their plan, so I came back every night and waited for them until I saw their cart pass by. You know the rest."

"Thank you, from all of us."

She smiled genuinely. "Thank you, for trying to keep our kingdom safe. I'll keep your secret as royals."

Instead of being surprised, he was quite calm. Kara had his complete trust. "Was it that obvious?" he asked.

"Only because I knew the royals from Equilibrium had gone missing. Otherwise, you were pretty good at covering it up."

They stood in comfortable silence, watching the sunset. Jason thought about all he had learned about here, and his face scrunched up in confusion when he came to a specific thought. "Were you going to let me think that everything Ronan said about you was true?"

She nodded slowly. "Pokemon think what they think. As long as I know it's not true, I don't care what they believe."


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

 **Trial By Water**

Carson extended his arms, focusing his aura on his paws. His eyelids shut, the black appendages rose, and energy flowed through his blood. The brown Z-crystal on his arm shone brightly as he used it's power. A small spark ignited, creating a small blue fleck of energy. Multiple specks diffused through his paws, causing the sphere to grow. The longer he focused, the bigger it got.

"Alright now," Rhetta sang softly. "Open your eyes."

The red irises revealed themselves, lighting up with joy. Carson smiled at the abnormally light Aura Sphere that pulsed with life, waves of invisible energy radiating off it. His attention drifted to the target across the lake, the one he was supposed to aim at.

He drew more energy from his heart and from the Z-crystal, doubling the power of his special move. When he spread his palms and released all the energy through them, a thick beam of aura shot across the plains. It smashed right through the wooden target and move far beyond, hitting the edge of the mountain. Startled by the sudden rush of power, he cut off the energy flow, feeling a painful snap in his arms. The glow in his Z-crystal died, leaving it temporarily useless.

"See how easy that was?" Rhetta asked with a grin and a raised eyebrow. "All you have to do is focus."

Carson rubbed his forearms, feeling like his bones were bruised. "I never would've been able to learn that quickly at home." He paused to catch his breath. "Is it supposed to hurt?"

"You've gotta be careful when dealing with your special Z-power," Rhetta explained. "Any normal pokemon with your Z-stone would've had its bones broken."

He blinked. "That's seems kinda dangerous, then. Don't you think?"

"As long as a pokemon is taught how to control it, it's perfectly safe. A normal Z-stone leaves the same effect you just experienced. Yours is so powerful because it has Tapu Koko's level of power."

The Umbreon smiled curiously at the Zoroark and the Lucario. Nostalgic memories flooded his brain. Aris remembered a time when he saw a similar situation: one pokemon teaching the other. They shared a sweet moment then, just as Carson and Rhetta shared on now. History was repeating itself.

"Forming an Aura Sphere is the easy part," Aris chuckled. "Using it to create your own special move is the hard part."

"I could train all day if you guys are willing to," Carson smiled excitedly. "Let's keep going!"

"How about a little break?" Rhetta suggested, calming the Lucario down. "That may have seemed very quick to you, but we've been at this for nearly four hours."

He looked to the sky and laughed. "Oh. I guess we have."

"While you two take a break, I'm going to check on Stephanie's progress."

Unlike Carson, who was having a lot more fun with the new training schedule, Stephanie wanted to collapse. She was being worked harder now that Ronan focused his attention on only her. She rose before the sun and arrived at the Valley for training at six in the morning. Carson followed an hour later, but he did so voluntarily since Rhetta and Aris asked him what time to start. He walked into the Valley to find Steph working so hard that she didn't even notice his presence.

She spun, narrowly avoiding razor sharp water stars, and used the momentum of the spin to ram her tail against more, destroying them with ease. Her defense fell for just a second, allowing a Water Shuriken to pierce her side. She didn't falter, but attempted to ignore it and fired a Shadow Ball at more oncoming throwing stars. Upon impact, a cloud of smoke whipped through the air. More shurikens cut through the smoke, exploding against the unaware Eevee's skin. The impact combined with her weak body sent her tumbling into the ground. She rolled over a few times before she lost momentum and stopped on her stomach. She didn't get back up.

Once the smoke cleared, Ronan sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"What this time?" Steph squeaked. She coughed as she struggled to get up. Her legs shook whenever she put weight on them, but she made herself stand.

"You're not getting any better," Ronan stated with a monotone voice.

"I've been working nonstop all day," she sighed, stumbling over to him. "I'm exhausted. The only breaks I've gotten are quick runs to drink some water."

Ronan waved a webbed hand, as if dismissing her. "Complaining isn't doing anything."

"I haven't complained all day, and I'm not complaining now. I've listened to everything you've told me to do because I want to get better."

Aris came by to find a disappointed Greninja and an Eevee who was about to collapse. "How are things going?"

"Not good," Ronan answered. "She's making no progress."

"We've been training for five hours straight," Steph muttered hoarsely.

"What seems to be the problem?" Aris asked Ronan.

"She's thinking too much and doing the exact same thing no matter how many times I tell her."

"I've been doing everything you've said!" At this point, Steph noticed that Ronan was too irritated to assign laps as punishment for answering back. "If you think I need five hours of pure training, then okay. I'll train for five hours! I'll do what you say because I want to get better. I've taken any advice, any command you've given me and put it to use and you're still unhappy!"

Aris saw it. He saw her passionate soul that desired strength and approval of those stronger than her. He furrowed his eyebrows at her, not hearing Steph's voice but someone else's. She sounded so familiar, looked so familiar. How? After so long, how could he still be thinking about it?

"Hey guys," Jason greeted as he walked through the door of the Ruins, carrying a basket on his back. Following him was the rest of the gang.

"Hey Jason," Steph answered back.

"Thought we could have lunch since Liam, Kai, and I have half an hour before training," Leona suggested with a smile. She set a blanket down on the grass for everyone to sit on.

Steph looked to Ronan, and he nodded in approval.

"Had a rough day of training?" Kai assumed as his Eevee friend sat down.

"Very," she responded, her voice still exhausted and raspy.

Leonardo pulled the only Sitrus berry out of the basket and handed it over to Steph. "Is Carson coming over to eat with us?"

The Rockruff looked over his shoulder, smiling as he saw the Lucario training with the Zoroark. "Nah. It looks like he's having fun with his girlfriend."

"Calm down," Leona laughed. "He's learning to use his powers. I'd be excited and so would you."

"And, since we don't need Carson for this discussion, we could maybe talk about evolution." Liam raised both eyebrows and glanced at everyone. Though it was something they clearly needed and wanted to talk about it. He sighed, not blaming them. "I'll go first, then. I got an Espeon on my evolution test."

"I thought it suited him so well," Steph commented.

Leona responded with a questioning gaze. "Yeah, but it's a little weird. I've never heard anyone say you would be an Espeon."

"That's exactly what I said!" Liam exclaimed, eyes widening.

"Well everyone thought I would get a Sylveon," Stephanie began. "And I got a Sylveon."

"Really?" This time, it was Leonardo who spoke up. Everyone had forgotten that he was here, mostly because they usually discussed evolution without him.

"You sound surprised," she observed.

He sniggered. "Yeah, I just thought that since you're usually good at everything you do that you would get Descending."

"You thought wrong," she smiled. "But didn't you get Descending?"

"Uh, yeah." He shrugged it off, wishing to not talk about himself. "It's no big deal."

"Have you thought about what you're going to choose?" Kai asked.

Leo shrugged again. "A little, but it's not something I worry about."

"What about what _you're_ going to evolve into?" Leona questioned the Rockruff excitedly, her bushy tail wagging.

"That's right!" Steph remembered. "Midday Lycanroc, or Midnight?"

Kai grinned and his tail swayed back and forth. "I haven't been able to talk about it with the two Lycanroc here, but I think I really want to evolve into the Midnight form. The only problem is my dad." The rock type looked all around, getting confused looks from his friends. He hadn't told them. "You know all he's been talking about for months is not being able to wait until I evolve. He's so excited to see me experience what he experienced when he evolved, but I just don't feel like his evolution is my evolution."

"Dude, go for it," Leo encouraged. "It's not his choice to make. Evolution is permanent, so you need to make the best choice for you."

The words echoed in Liam's mind. He knew what he wanted to evolve into, but was it best for him? He didn't know anything other than the test said he was meant to be an Espeon. His strongest evolution was an Espeon, but he didn't feel like an Espeon was him.

"What's eating you?" Steph asked.

Liam's head shot up, only to find that Stephanie had asked the question to her brother.

"I got Descending," Jason responded without hesitation. "So yeah, I can be anything I want, do anything I want, become as strong as I want. I'm not held back by physical limitations, so anything I chose will the best option for me. I just don't know what I want."

"That's okay." Leona smiled at her cousin. "I got a Glaceon. What no one predicted, what I didn't think I would be, is what I got. But that's okay. We all still have to choose what we want, what we think is best for us. Maybe a Glaceon is the best option for me, but I have to be the one to decide that."

"We've all gotta decide what we want," Leo stated with a false layer of belief. "And what we want will be what's best for us."

"We're not cubs anymore," Kai added, realization lighting his eyes. "Like it or not, our parents aren't here to help us or to tell us what to do."

Jason nodded. "Thanks guys." His decision wasn't going to be any easier, but he felt more relaxed now.

Stephanie quickly and quietly pulled the Oran berry leaves out of the basket and split them between her and her brother. "They're certainly not the ones telling me to eat these nasty things," she whispered, quickly downing the leaves.

Their lunch was interrupted by a sharp whistle, drawing their attention to Ronan. "Leona, Liam, and Kai. Time's up. Let's get training."

…

Leonardo and Jason were at the Valley before it was their time to train. With just the two of them, they would have a chance to really improve their fighting abilities. Perhaps even one of them would evolve and move on to training with Carson, who was still training after almost eight hours.

"You two ready?" Ronan asked, standing tall above the two Eevee.

They nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good. Leonardo, you're with me. Jason, Aris is going to take you to the Ruins."

The Eevee cocked his head to the side. "For...what?"

"He and I think you're ready to evolve, so we want you to go to the Ruins for your trial."

"Already?" he questioned. "We've only been training for a week."

"Some move faster than others," the Greninja replied. "So start moving and-"

"Well that's disappointing. I wanted to see some training." Everyone turned their heads to side, finding a pure white Ninetales walking up to them. "But, I'd love to see a trial. Never got to do one myself."

Jason smiled and stood up excitedly. "Kara."

Aris, also surprised by her appearance, was quick to get her to join in. "I'm glad you came today. Rhetta and one of the new Libras are training at the far end, or you could stay with Ronan and Leonardo, perhaps-"

"I didn't come to train," she stated bluntly with a shrug. "I came to watch to see if I'll start coming to training."

"Of course you did," Ronan sighed. "Why exactly did you decide to come today?"

"I don't have to tell you that."

"Fine, go on and watch. It's not like you do more than that anyway."

A quiet growl formed in Jason throat, but Kara shook her head at him, telling him Ronan wasn't worth it. Jason didn't like that Ronan was insulting her. He had no idea what Kara had done for him and for all pokemon in and outside the kingdoms. But, there was no reason to get mad.

"Is it alright if I watch your trial, Jason?" Kara asked.

"Of course."

Aris nodded, now aware that Kara was coming to check out the training methods, but made sure he focused on Jason's trial. Currently, Jason's evolution was more of a priority than Kara's willingness to train with them.

The Umbreon led the Eevee and Ninetales back to the Valley entrance. Jason examined the Ruins thoroughly, wondering what exactly this trial was going to be. A battle was the only thing he could think of.

Upon instruction from Aris, Jason placed a single paw in the small pond under Zygarde. Immediately, a golden aura radiated from him and bounced on the ripples, spreading through the water. The gold light spread into the floor, illuminating the stone rock. Both the back door to the Valley and the front entrance closed with a _thud_ , leaving the three alone in the single room. Just seconds later, the golden light narrowed to a single tile under Jason. The Eevee stood still and stared at the floor in curiousity.

A section of the right wall retreated into the ground, revealing a staircase behind it. The gold light made a paw print trail on the floor from Jason to the stairs, blinking to get his attention. He looked to Aris, who nodded, and proceeded to follow the lights.

"Aris, what exactly is my trial?"

"It's different for everyone," the Umbreon responded.

"What was Rhetta's?" Kara followed up, notifying Aris that she was still following.

"I don't know. She didn't want anyone to watch her take it, and she didn't talk about it afterward."

"Then how do you know she completed it?"

"Because she came out of the Ruins as a Zoroark."

Kara raised an eyebrow questioningly. "That doesn't necessarily mean she passed. Evolution isn't just about strength. It's about overcoming what held you back before. Maybe to overcome that, she had to fail in some sort of way."

Aris smiled at the ice type. "You're rather smart."

"I know," she assured with a sly smile.

The set of stairs led to a deep underground lake, lit up by shining blue, vein-like lights in the rock walls. A large, moss and vine covered waterfall in the back of the cave cascaded into the water, creating ripples throughout the lake. The right half of the cave was simply rock ground with basins of water spread over the area. Small islands of land dotted the surface of the water, each within jumping distance of another. One rock island in the center of the lake was dimly lit by the same golden light as the paw print trail.

Jason glanced back, watching Aris and Kara take a seat by the entrance to the cave. He looked to the Umbreon, who gestured for him to follow the golden light. Kara, however, provided an assuring and encouraging smile. He nodded to them and turned back toward the lake.

His heart beat fast, pounding in his ears as he stared at the water. The aura radiating from the hundreds of creatures swimming in the water was strong, strong enough for him to feel it. He hopped along the rock islands, and just as he landed on the golden one, the light went out. He waited, nervous yet impatient, but determination filled his eyes. Just because he didn't know what evolution he wanted didn't mean he wasn't ready. All he had to do was prove it.

He jumped back, a small splash in the water surprising him. He momentarily bared his fangs, only to find a small, white and blue pokemon poking its head above the surface. His face softened, but he remained vigilant. Several more joined the first, crying out happily as if asking Jason to come and watching him with distorted pupils. Due to his self-guided research, he was able to identify this pokemon he'd never seen before as Wishiwashi.

The Eevee became suspicious, yet he was curious. He was expecting a fight, but had no idea if that's what his trial was. Against his own judgement, he reached a paw into the water and gently touched a fish. It rubbed its head against his paw, getting a feel for Jason's aura so it could determine which friends to call.

Just as Jason predicted, it was a bad idea.

As ear-splitting shriek, almost like a battle cry, bounced off the walls of the cave. The Wishiwashi began to retreat back into the water, spinning in a vortex. The swarm became darker as more joined the school and surrounded his island. He leapt along the stone, attempting to avoid the swarm, but the Wishiwashi continued to follow him. They torpedoed past him, emerging from the water as a single mass and intercepting Jason's path.

He skidded to a halt, narrowly avoiding a nose-dive into the water, and braced himself for impact. The mass split in half, purposefully avoiding a collision with him, and met back together in the water. It faced him and let out a battle cry.

Jason's breaths were quick, but steady. He turned his head to see the swarm of Wishiwashi waiting for him. They had given him a warning, telling him this was the beginning of his trail. Realizing what was going on, he shook his head and stood back on all fours. _You're not going to get a warning in a real fight,_ he thought to himself.

His mind scanned the area, trying to find advantages of the terrain and observing the opponent. The hundreds of single Wishiwashi had come together in their School Form, making it five times Jason's size. That, combined with the piercing white eyes and fearsome roar, made shivers role down the Eevee's spine. The limited number of surfaces also worked against him. He would have to think ahead to be able to fire moves and jump between the islands as well as control his movement so as not to land in the water. While he was a good swimmer, the Wishiwashi was faster and stronger in the water.

A pump of water headed straight for his head. With barely any time to respond, he had to react on the first instinct that was inside him. He slid back, half of his body sinking into the water, and held on to solid ground with his claws as the pump of water shot over him. When he pulled himself back up, he was met with a blast of scalding water. His burning skin was quickly cooled as he toppled into the lake, but the sensation of heat remained.

Forcing his eyes open, Jason spotted Wishiwashi zooming toward him. He kicked up, taking in a breath of air, but didn't have enough time to get out of the water. Wishiwashi burst forth from the river, tackling him into the ceiling and letting him flop back into the water. A few seconds passed before he was able to resurface and drag himself back onto land, gasping for breath.

It charged him again, creating waves with its speed. More prepared this time, his heart beat in tune with his movement, creating a sphere of ghostly aura as his paws shifted to the correct position. Instead of coming straight for him, the Wishiwashi glitched, and suddenly five schools of Wishiwashi appeared, all rushing at Jason from different directions. Instead of panicking, instead of taking the hit, determination rushed through his veins. He fired the Shadow Ball at the ground just as the water pokemon jumped. The force of the impact at close range pushed him into the air, allowing him to avoid a nasty hit and showing him which Wishiwashi was real.

Five Double Teams disappeared, and Jason easily shot another Shadow Ball at the remaining Wishiwashi. When the sphere collided with the water type, it growled loudly as several Solo Form Wishiwashi crumbled from the body. When the mass returned to the water, the lost pokemon returned to the school, and that's when Jason found the opening.

Upon landing back on an island, he fired back to back Shadow Balls all while hopping between the dots of rock. He didn't let up, didn't lose focus. His breathing became steady, though his body was becoming tired, but he forced himself to keep going.

Aris watched from the sideline, unconsciously smiling. This Eevee was just like her. His form was excellent and gave him the maximum power when launching moves. He was clever, finding any openings and using them to his advantage, and Aris was thoroughly impressed. He had only seen one girl as talented, as determined, and as clever as Jason. She didn't let up under pressure, and neither did Jason.

For Jason, finding the opening was harder than executing a plan to use it to his advantage. Wishiwashi was fast and didn't let up on him. It dove deep into the water, beginning a period of dead silence. He stayed alert, waiting for it to come back, and listened for any noise. The only sound that came to his ears was the crashing waterfall. He turned on the rock, watching for movement in the water, perhaps a darker shadow.

No sooner did he turn around did the colossal pokemon burst forth from the water, fins glowing with a dark aura. It bashed his sides with its fin and tail, but Jason wasn't going to simply take the hit. As it proceeded to lunge past him, he whirled his head to the side and grabbed several single Wishiwashi in his mouth. He landed in the water yet again, but held onto the small water pokemon. His swimming instincts kicked in, and before the School Form Wishiwashi could come back, he was out of the water and running across the cave.

Kara raised an eyebrow as she realized what the Eevee's plan was. He dashed to the small basins of water scattered about the cave floor and dropped the five or so Wishiwashi in. Then, he returned to the lake. She examined the fight, watching him purposely fall into the water while giving the facade that it was an accident. His act fooled Wishiwashi, letting Jason snatch more Single Forms and bring them to the basins. There, they couldn't return to the school, and Wishiwashi began to diminish in size.

The Ninetales grinned, impressed at Jason's skill. He was taking hits left and right without so much as slowing down. His endurance was high as well as his intelligence. She was on the edge of her paws, excited to see him battle. His swimming technique was especially excellent, allowing him to move through the water almost as fast as a water type.

Once Wishiwashi was small enough, Jason switched into attack mode. He kicked sand into its eyes, blinding it long enough for him to launch rapid fire Shadow Balls. He was moving faster than he was before, hopping along the rock islands and attacking. In attempt to finish the fight, he paused, another orb manifesting in front of his mouth. He launched it, watching it cackle with power as it soared towards its target. Upon impact, a roar echoed through the cave followed by a dust storm of smoke that enveloped Wishiwashi,

The Eevee kept his guard up, hoping that the fight was over but expecting it to keep going. He was exhausted, breathing heavily and legs shaking, not to mention the fact that he was drenched. When the smoke cleared, all that remained were Single Form Wishiwashi. They squeaked at him, making no effort to reform, and retreated into the water.

Jason let out a gasp of relief, smiling. A golden light flickered under him to get his attention and proceeded to make a trail of pawprints back to the entrance. Slowly, he began to follow them. Aris and Kara joined him. While Aris gave him a 'well done', Kara provided a smile of approval.

Jason proved that he was ready to evolve, but had yet to decide what he wanted to become.

After seeing the Eevee's condition, Ronan and Aris dismissed Jason for the rest of the day. Part of the reason, however, was to give him a chance to think about what he was going to evolve into. As soon as he left, Kara went with him, and they traveled to the pokemon reserve where they had first talked. Naturally, the conversation this time was evolution.

"With swimming skills like that," Kara began, "I'm sure you've been told a thousand times that a Vaporeon would suit you."

"Yup," Jason replied, mindlessly playing with the Rattata with a moustache.

"Is that what you want?"

"I don't know. The evolution test at Equilibrium said I was Descending."

"Descending?" The word made Kara's brain click and memories flooded back. "As in the Wild and Descending One?"

"Yeah. You know my mom's the Wild One."

"Of course, but what does Descending mean?"

"Oh." Jason sat up and focused his attention on the ice Ninetales. "In my kingdom, every Eevee is required to take this test that tells you which evolution makes you the strongest. Getting Descending means that there is no strongest evolution."

"You're not held back by physical limitations," Kara deduced. She smiled in amazement. "That's interesting."

"I guess that's one way to put it," Jason sighed.

"Your problems are all in your head." She stood and pulled him to his paws, running a few feet away. "To me you always seemed like a Espeon."

He jogged after her. "Why?"

"You're clever, quick to come up with a strategy, and relaxed. I would definitely depend on you in a battle."

She picked up her pace, forcing Jason to run faster. Within a few seconds, he was by her side. "So you think I should be an Espeon?"

"I think you already know the answer to your evolution. Like I said, you created the roadblocks."

"That doesn't make the decision easier."

"Here's some incentive." Kara took an unexpected, sharp turn, but that didn't slow Jason down. "When you evolve, I'll start coming to training."


	14. Chapter 13

**Yikes! It's been almost a month since I've last updated. Now that the school year has begun, I'm going to be super busy with work so I won't have as much time to write. Lucky for you guys, I've already written a couple of chapters so updates should still happen relatively frequently. Thanks for sticking by for this long!**

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

 **Battle With the Beast**

The sun was already down when Jason sent the message to his family and friends, as well as Kara and Rhetta. They met him and Carson in the Valley, right in front of the Solgaleo statue. While the statues of Tapu Koko, Tapu Fini, and Tapu Lele were fully colored, Solgaleo and the others were not.

Steph, upon hearing that Jason had passed his trial, felt happiness and a bit jealously. She was excited to see what her brother would choose, but at the same time she wanted to be the one to evolve first. She had always thought she was the strongest, and wanted to prove it by evolving first, but that wouldn't be the case.

"Ready to get your powers?" Rhetta asked, crossing her arms and smiling.

"Oh yeah," Jason replied, nodding excitedly.

Beside him, Cosmog cried out in joy, seemingly more excited than him. It danced around in a circle, singing. It was excited to see Solgaleo again and excited to see its descendant evolve.

"You're clearly not choosing an Espeon," Kara mentioned, taking note of the time of day. "So I'm guessing Umbreon?"

Jason shook his head. "Nope."

Steph gave a confused glance to Kara. "You're the other Libra, right?"

The Ninetales nodded.

"Why do you think he would evolve into an Espeon?" she asked, a little suspicious.

Kara gave a sly smile. "I think it suits him."

Stephania reared her head at Kara's answer. How did she know what suited her brother? How did she even know Jason?

After fishing the stone out of the river, Carson held it out to Jason. Before anyone could react to the type of stone he chose, the Eevee picked it up in his mouth.

The stone transformed into particles of light and energy, diffusing through his fur and concealing him in a bright light. The electrical energy from the stone raced through his veins, allowing his heart to absorb it and learn to produce the same form of energy. Then, with the internal change complete, his physical appearance altered as well.

His once short legs grew longer, adding nearly two feet in height. His torso stretched and thinned, and his head and ears shaped to fit his body. His fluffy collar clumped together in several pointed clumps that jutted out in all directions, and his tail did the same. Several more teeth poked through his gums, which would give his Bite extra power. When the white light disappeared, a Jolteon stood where the Eevee once did. With the evolution completely resetting his system, the green eyes that concealed his royal status were gone, leaving pure, sapphire blue ones behind.

Rhetta, being the only one there who didn't know the royal status, was the first one to react. "I knew you-"

Luckily for the Equilibrians, a roar cut her off. The ground began to shake, gradually increasing in magnitude, and the Solgaleo statue began to light. A quadruped figure jumped over the mountain, landing beside Jason and jostling the earth. The sudden movement caused the Libras to fall over, making the Sunne pokemon seem larger than it was.

The blue, star scaped forehead shined like the night sky while it's gold and white face and mane blazed like the sun. His tail swished through the air as he focused its sharp blue eyes on Jason. He examined the new Jolteon and grunted with satisfaction. Jason met the legend's eyes and quickly stood. The aura radiating from Solgaleo felt empowering, yet warm like the sun.

Cosmog squealed and floated to Solgaleo, hugging his leg with its appendages. Of course, the baby was so small, so his arm-like appendages didn't reach around the white column of a leg. Solgaleo responded by rubbing his nose against the baby cloud pokemon and purring. When Cosmog was content, it back away and let the cosmic beast resume his duty.

Solgaleo closed his eyes and bowed his head to Jason, opening the third eye on his starscape forehead. Particles of sunlight manifested in the air in front of Jason, forming a hexagonal shape. Once the light disappeared, a stone with diamond-shaped indentation in the center floated to Jason. As he took it in his paw, three bands, colored white-gold-white, stained his left wrist.

Solgaleo, with a deep yet wise voice, spoke, "You're very extraordinary. I look forward to seeing how much you grow with your new power."

Before he left, Stephania met eyes with Solgaleo. She was his descendant. She would eventually carry his power just like her brother. Just like him, she felt the power radiating from the legend. She longed to talk to him, to ask him why she couldn't evolve, but she didn't. This was her brother's moment, and she couldn't drag the attention to herself.

Solgaleo gave Steph a questioning gaze. He could sense her troubled thoughts. He knew she was struggling with who she was. The Eevee was very strong, both mentally and physically, but she had one obstacle she had yet to overcome. He knew that she would overcome it eventually, but time was running out. He wished he could tell her, but that would only cause her to take longer to evolve. She had to overcome what was holding her back, and she had to do it on her own.

Solgaleo gave out one last roar, turned, and leapt back over the mountains in a single bound.

"Well now that that's over," Rhetta began calmly. "You _are_ the missing royals from Equilibrium!"

Carson was quick to jump in. "Well, yes, but-"

"I knew it! I knew you were lying! I knew you were the royals!" She paced back and forth. "I hoped you weren't, but now you could possibly start a war with your kingdom and mine! Do you know how many messages we've received from Equilibrium? They're looking for you and they're blaming us!"

"Queen Valerie and King Hollow already know," Leona explained, attempting to calm the Zoroark.

"Okay, but you couldn't tell your parents that you're here?"

"Not really, no." Carson bared a half-smile, hoping Rhetta would understand. "We have to train here, and our parents would never let us stay. And, if we refused to come home, they would think something's up and declare war on your kingdom."

Rhetta sighed. "I understand, but you're endangering my kingdoms by being here. Ultra Kingdom and Equilibrium are already on bad terms with us, and both of them are looking for you."

"I know. Trust me, we want to tell our parents we're here, but now this is our home too. We would never want anyone to get hurt."

"I'm surprised you didn't figure it out sooner," Kara stated. "I thought you were smarter than that."

The dark type shot the Ninetales a look. "In the back of my mind I knew they were the royals. I had just hoped they weren't, or that they would tell me instead of letting me find out on my own."

"Sorry," Carson apologized. "You, Kara, the King and Queen, Bolt, and Silver are the only ones that know. We want to keep it a secret so that no wars begin."

"Aris and Ronan don't know either," the Ninetales pointed out.

"How did you even know?" Rhetta asked Kara with a not-so-kind tone. "You haven't even shown up to train with them."

"I helped them escape from the Ultras," Kara replied, not giving any sort of verbal retaliation. "And you can cool down. I'm coming to train tomorrow."

Rhetta huffed, debating in her mind whether to challenge the ice type or not. A glance at Carson calmed her down and convinced her not to, she and began walking back to the entrance of the Valley. "Fine. I'm going to bed. We'll talk more in the morning."

Once the Zoroark was gone, Liam's attention went to Kara. "So that's why there was so much ice everywhere. You're the one who saved us."

Kara nodded and shrugged. "Don't give me so much credit. I did send you guys tumbling down a mountain. Sorry about that."

 _She's apologizing?_ Jason placed his Z-stone on the ground, rolling his shoulders to adjust to his new Jolteon form. "Don't apologize. Who knows what would've happened to us if you didn't help."

Carson turned and smiled at his friend. "How does evolution feel?"

He flicked his left wrist, shaking off the tingling feeling from his colored bands. "Different, but a good different."

"Well then," Kara yawned, stretching her front legs, "if we're all done here, I'm going to call it a night."

As everyone began to leave, Jason noticed his sister didn't move. Her gaze remained on the stars. "Steph?"

The Eevee looked at her brother, blinking in confusions until she realized the Jolteon was her brother. "Uh, yeah?"

"You coming? We've got training tomorrow."

She shook her head. "I think I'm going to stay here for a little while."

"You sure?" he asked, concern filling his voice. "Are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine," she answered, smiling. "Don't worry."

"Steph, I know you. I know when something is wrong."

She dropped her fake smile and sighed. "I just need to be alone right now, Jason, and you need sleep."

"Steph I-"

"I'll be better tomorrow, Jason."

"I really don't think-"

"I promise."

"Just...come to me if you need to talk."

As soon as he left, Steph put her plan into action.

...

The second attack came at midnight.

The earth shook as vibrations of energy pulsed through the air, followed by a _snap_ like lightning cutting a tree clean in half. A thin glowing line appeared in the sky above the Fire Kingdom castle, expanding slightly as something from the inside pulled at it. Pokemon rushed from their homes, startled by the noise, only to be met with daunting fear.

The threat was recognized almost immediately. The police came quickly, evacuating the citizens as fast as they could, all while the creature continued to free itself from the wormhole.

Despite being asleep in the Ice castle miles away, Rhetta was up and ready before she even got the signal for help. It had been a while since she had seen an Ultra Beast, but she knew better than to underestimate their power. She glanced over to Cosmog, who chose to sleep at the foot of her bed that night. _How can it be coming through? Cosmog is perfectly fine._

The Zoroark ran out of her room, leaving the door slightly open for Cosmog, and dashed down the hallway. She stopped at one door, banging rapidly on the wood, and did the same to the one next to it. "Carson, Jason! Wake up! We've got an emergency!"

A Jolteon opened one door and yawned casually, unaware of the danger looming over the kingdoms. His sleepy eyes barely opened, but enough so that his now green eyes could be seen. "Why are you yelling?"

"There's another attack. It's an Ultra Beast." She turned and slammed her fist against Carson's door again, growing impatient and worried. "Wake up!"

Liam emerged from behind Jason, his chest tightening with worry. "Another one?" Memories of his previous encounter flashed in his mind.

"Yes! And we all need to get there now!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Carson apologized, opening the door in a hurry. "Let's go."

Rhetta gestured to Carson and Jason. "You two are with me. Liam, go tell the queen what's happening and that we're on it."

The three took off, two of which who were unsure what the actual plan was, while Liam ran to find Queen Valerie.

Unlike Carson, Jason adapted to his new form in hours. He ran ahead of them, determined and ready to fight. He was fast, faster than he had ever been on land or in the water. He could feel the electricity dancing in his heart, ready to unleash a new electric attack. Not choosing a Vaporeon was a regret he did not possess.

Being the new fastest, he made the stop by Princess Kara's room and woke her just as loudly as Rhetta woke him. "Kara!"

A not-so-happy face greeted him. "I was sleeping."

"Kingdoms are under attack," he explained quickly. "We need your help."

With just one sentence of explanation, Kara was wide awake and tailing the Jolteon.

"What are you doing here, Novoa?" Rhetta growled as she ran beside the Ninetales.

"Same as you," Kara replied without acknowledging Rhetta's tone.

As soon as the four Libras arrived at the Fire Kingdom castle, the Ultra Beast sensed their presence. Unlike Nihilego, however, it responded with aggression. It was not scared and was not going back. It flew toward them, buzzing, and landed on the ground in front of the Libras, not daring to back down. It's blood red skin and bulging, transparent muscles made Jason back away. A long, needle nose and black spikes protruded from its body, and its four legs dug deep into the ground. Carson could sense the angry aura radiating from it.

As it charged with a glowing fist, Carson pulled Rhetta close to get her out of the way. She felt the wind of the beast's fist as it zoomed behind her, causing her to trip and fall into the Lucario. He quickly helped her regain balance.

"Nice reflexes," she complemented, unaware of the blush on her cheeks.

Luckily, Carson was too distracted the the Ultra Beast to notice. "You gotta plan? You're kinda the expert here."

The beast spread its wings, catching the wind, and twisted around to charge again. Its arm glowed with a white aura as fighting energy flooded its veins.

Jason's reflexes were sharp. He easily dodged, dashing away in a yellow blur. He glanced down at his paws, surprised at how much his evolution had allowed him to grow.

When Jason dodged, Carson took the nasty hit from the Hammer Arm, but luckily flew out of the way of any buildings or debris. His land sounded rough, though it hardly hurt as his new body was used to the pain of hitting the ground. "Anyone know what this thing is?" he shouted as he pulled himself to his feet.

Kara blasted beams of ice, knowing it wouldn't do much more than keep the Ultra Beast occupied. "It's called Buzzwole! Bug and fighting!"

Rhetta jumped to Kara's side with long, glowing white claws. "I've got this." She pushed off the ground, rushing into the air and aiming her Aerial Ace directly at Buzzwole's chest. Inches away from landing a super effect hit, the beast intercepted with Hammer Arm. With one arm it blocked her attack, and with the other it slammed her to the ground.

Rhetta's impact caused a small crater to form in the ground and sent waves of pain through her back, but she forced herself to get up. Powering through the pain, she formed a bright blue orb in each paw and threw them at Buzzwole.

The beast dove down, avoiding the Focus Blasts, and circled around with another Hammer Arm.

"Dark is weak to fighting _and_ bug," Kara growled, leaning back to avoid the attack. "You can't fight this thing on your own."

"I have been for almost three years now," the Zoroark snapped, preparing another Aerial Ace, "while you've been ignoring your responsibilities!"

The Ninetales ignored the snarky comment. "Jason's the only one here without a type disadvantage." She blasted another beam of ice.

Buzzwole dodged and shot into the air, spinning rapidly while dozens of needles sprayed from his body. The Leech Life hit all four Libras, temporarily paralyzing them while sapping the energy from their bodies. The spinning red body gradually turned to silver as Buzzwole coated itself in iron. While the Libras were still feeling the effects of Leech Life, it spun through the air and bashed its body into three of them, sending them flying in all directions.

The fourth Libra, however, had allowed his sharp reflexes to take over. He bolted out of the way, only to be followed closely behind. When an opening formed, he pivoted on his paws, kicked dirt and rocks into the spinning silver ball, and dashed away again.

Buzzwole's eyes suddenly burned as particles of dirt sharply poked them. As it slowed, its body lost its silver shine, and it rubbed its eyes to clear away the dirt.

Jason circled back to his friends while the beast was distracted. "Does anyone have a plan?"

Rhetta pushed herself back onto her feet, gritting her teeth. "I've got one."

Kara jumped in, an Ice Beam ready to fire. "I've got a better one."

The Zoroark scowled. "I know this thing better than you do, Novoa!"

"Well apparently you don't know that you're weak against it!" She blasted the Ice Beam, nailing Buzzwole in the back, and froze its wings. "Jason, keep it distracted!"

The Jolteon peered back at Buzzwole who was twisting around angrily and firing random moves in attempt to break the ice off his back. "Not to question your judgement, but how exactly?"

"You're fast and if you can use your electric attacks to distract it, you'll sap more energy than the rest of us."

Buzzwole shattered the last of the ice and flew back into the air, turning his attention to the Libras.

"Jason! Go now!"

Trusting Kara, Jason charged at Buzzwole, nicked its leg with a quick Bite, and landed behind the beast. The bite wasn't so much to deal damage as it was to get attention. Kara, Carson, and Rhetta moved behind a broken house, giving him room to run and distract Buzzwole as they formed a plan.

A Thunderbolt came naturally to the newly evolved Jolteon. Electricity raced through his heart as he ran, sending jolts up and down his legs. He focused it into the ends of his spiky white collar and released it.

Buzzwole dodged, only for another Thunderbolt to be thrown his way. He continued to fly around, trying to avoid the electrical bursts of energy. Its anger rose as it continually became frustrated with how annoying the Jolteon was being.

But, as Jason noticed, the more frustrated Buzzwole got, the more unbalanced and inconsistence its fighting ability became.

"Carson, how good is your Aura Sphere?" Kara asked, keeping an eye on Jason. So far, he was doing good.

"My aim isn't perfect. I don't know if I'd be able to hit a moving target."

"Alright, that's fine. We can do something else." Her eyes scanned the area, picking up large pieces of debris. "You two, grab anything with a flat surface and follow my lead."

Kara guided her fellow Libras, coating the flat sides of the objects with a thin layer of ice and instructing on where they should be placed. Jason's area of distraction was limited and the difficulty was increased. He started taking more hits and was growing tired when Kara pulled him into the shadows.

Buzzwole was left wandering in a maze of ice, slowly hovering around and searching for the Libra. It could feel them near. It could feel their power.

Jason stepped in front of the reflecting ice that coated a wooden door. His reflection bounced onto the other strategically mirrors, appearing to Buzzwole as multiple Jolteons.

The beast instantly attacked, shattering the mirror in front of him. Jason stepped out of the way, disappearing again.

While Buzzwole was distracted, Rhetta snuck up behind it by hiding in the shadows behind the makeshift mirrors. When the beast attacked the decoy Jolteon in the mirror, she darted from the shadows. Her Aerial Ace slashed its back twice as it shattered the ice. After landing back on the ground, she retreated.

Buzzwole spun around, intending to hit whatever attacked him with his Hammer Arm, only to have the Jolteon appear again. It growled and punched another mirror only to be hit again by the flying type move. It didn't dare back down, but instead proceeded to shatter all of the reflective ice in an angry fury.

Rhetta managed a few more Aerial Aces, taking a lot of energy from the bug and fighting type. It seemed to be at the point of fainting when she decided to attack again.

However, Buzzwole got a second wind. It twisted around, grabbing Rhetta by the throat, and growled, "I...AM NOT...GOING BACK!"

Carson's stomach dropped when he saw Rhetta in danger. Instinctively, his aura gathered into a sphere at his paws, energy flowing from his Z-crystal, and he fired a bright beam at Buzzwole. The impact echoed and caused a cloud of smoke to whip up, and from it Rhetta fell.

She easily flipped around and landed gently on her paws, but her face still had an expression of shock. She had never heard an Ultra Beast speak before.

Buzzwole changed into flight mode and speed away. Jason attempted to hit it with a few Thunderbolts, but it had dodged and flew out of the way as fast as it could. With it gone, the wormhole closed.

"I'm not gonna lie," Kara panted, "but we did pretty good."

"It got away, Novoa!" Rhetta snapped. "Your plan didn't work."

"Well, we did have some good teamwork there," Carson pointed out with a pleased grin. "And it was our first time battling with each other."

The Zoroark raised an eyebrow at Carson, but his grin broke her serious face and made her smile as well.

…

"I'm not sure that's a good idea."

Steph jumped upon hearing the voice. She turned quickly, a Shadow Ball at the ready, but was met with a familiar Pikachu. Silver smiled as she let her disguise disappear, revealing the Mimikyu hidden underneath.

"It's just me," Silver said calmly. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Stephanie glanced around the rock formations in the Evolutionary Ruins and nodded. "I'm ready to evolve."

"Well that's not for you to decide."

"Well it's not for Ronan or Aris to decide! I should be able to choose when I evolve, and I want to evolve now."

"Stephanie," Silver sighed, "even if you do evolve, you won't be able to use your powers. You still have an internal block."

"So I'll evolve now and figure it out after."

"It doesn't work that way."

"Of course it doesn't!" Steph snapped. "Carson and Kara evolved without even starting their trials, but somehow Rhetta and Jason had to! Please explain to me how this all works!"

Silver waited a few moments, knowing Steph wasn't feeling too good. The Eevee took a few seconds to breath before sitting down in defeat. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I just don't understand. I've always been stronger and faster than Carson and Jason, so why do they get to evolve before me? Why can't I evolve?"

Silver sat by the Eevee, dropping the stick she used as a tail and placed the arm around Steph. "Evolving isn't just about physical change. Most pokemon evolve when they've experienced an internal change. Rhetta and Jason had to complete their trial to understand what was holding them back. Carson and Kara evolved when they understood what being a Libra was. Like them, something's holding you back."

"I keep hearing that, but I don't get it. Does everyone else know what's holding me back, because it would help a lot if they do."

Silver shook her head. "Only Solgaleo knows, but Ronan is trying to figure it out. He wants you to evolve and become a Libra, too."

Steph nodded and thought aloud, "If Jason had to pass his trial to evolve, maybe I have to pass mine. Maybe if I take it right now, I'll pass and I'll evolve."

Silver responded with a sigh. "I don't know, Steph. It doesn't seem like a good idea to me."

"Why? I'm not hurting anyone by seeing if I can evolve."

"You'd be going behind Ronan and Aris's backs, telling them that you don't respect their teaching methods, and you could be hurting yourself with the results."

The Eevee gave Silver a confused look. "You don't think I'll be able to complete it?"

"I…" Silver paused, and though she couldn't give any facial expression, Steph could tell she was at a loss for words.

"You _don't_ think I can do it." Steph stood and back away, leaving the Mimikyu's shadow arm.

"I don't," she admitted honestly. "You're growing stronger, but not in the way you need to. I can't stay here and watch you take your trial."

"Then don't. You can leave, and I'll do it on my own."

Silver sighed again and picked up her stick. "I really hope you pass Steph." She replaced her Pikachu illusion and scurried out the front entrance to the Ruins.

Steph shook her head, clearing away the thoughts. She faced the Zygarde fountain and dipped a paw into the pond as Jason had said he did.

"Okay, Solgaleo," she whispered. "I want to take my trial."


	15. Chapter 14

**Hey hey guys! It's been a while since I last updated (like a month)! But I'm here now.**

 **I've decided that I wanted to rewrite this story, at least what I've already written, for a tighter storyline and less loose details. But don't worry. Since I have a couple of chapters already written, I'll keep publishing those while I rewrite. And you won't have to reread at all! I'm just reinforcing the storyline so that everything makes sense.**

 **Thanks for all the support I'm getting and I hope you'll keep reading! This chapter is one of my favorites.**

* * *

 **Chapter 14**

 **The Front Line**

Steph dodged a deep blue orb and fired her own Hidden Power in return. The electric sphere collided with a ghostly orb and created a cloud of smoke. From it emerged a shiny Eevee with claws extended.

Leona swiped with her sharp claws while Steph bobbed and weaved out of the way.

 _An Absol emerged from its cave and faced her. Moonlight reflected off the grayish-blue, sphere-shaped stone hanging from its neck, one Steph recognized as a mega stone. Steph glanced down, seeing the entire Valley from the high peak, and shivered. It was cold._

 _Blue light spiraled out from the stone, surrounding the Absol in a sphere of energy. It roared loudly as its physical appearance began to change. When the blue light cleared, fur had grown out from the Absol's back to form a pair of wings and its horn had widened and curved._

Steph shook away the memory and somersaulted backwards, using the motion to throw Leona up into the air. She turned back on her paws and fired another Hidden Power at Leona.

Leona reacted with another Shadow Ball, breaking the Hidden Power in an instance, and landed back on her paws. She summoned an Iron Tail and circled around Steph, dodging more of the electrical Hidden Powers that were thrown her way.

Steph switched moves and adjusted her aim so that a Shadow Ball hit the ground just in front of Leona. A cloud of dust whipped up, enveloping her opponent.

Leona, however, saw the attack coming a mile away. She jumped at the last second, letting the dust cover her, and aimed the Iron Tail at Steph.

When Stephanie saw the Iron Tail coming at her, she couldn't dodge. A terrible memory flashed in and out of reality. For one second, she saw a dark claw rushing down at her, and the next she was nailed harshly with an Iron Tail.

The hard blow sent her tumbling into the ground, where she shortly stopped and didn't get back up. The memory continued to play out in her head.

 _It had been a one-sided fight since the beginning. The Mega Absol landed hit after hit, blow after blow while Stephanie was just trying to endure the hits. Eventually, she had no energy left to dodge and watching in fear as it swung its Night Slash down on her._

 _She was slammed into the ground, and after she didn't get up, the Absol huffed. It de-evolved from its mega state and returned to its cave._

"That will be all, thank you Leona."

Both the Umbreon and Eevee approached Steph, who laid still on the ground. Aris reached out and helped her up, but even then she seemed paralyzed. She barely supported herself and her eyes were squeezed shut.

"Steph?" Leona called worriedly. "You okay?"

"We're going to keep training, Leona," Aris stated. "I'll make sure she's okay. You should go back to the castle and get some rest as well."

"Alright," she responded unsurely. "Good luck Steph."

Once he was gone, Aris turned back to the Eevee. "Alright Stephanie, c'mon." He stood up and led her to the river. "Drink some water."

She nodded and lowered her mouth to the water, her eyes still shut. She drank for a long time, not wanting to face the reality, but eventually she opened her eyes. She stared through the ripples, and unnatural and confused green eyes stared back at her. _I don't even recognize myself anymore._ The Eevee sighed and focused her gaze up on the mountain to the peak where she had been brutally defeated by an Absol.

"What's wrong?" Aris asked, sitting down next to her. "You seemed quite out of focus during the battle."

"Yeah…"

"Is it because of your friends?"

She shook her head. "No."

Just a few days prior, Ice and Fire were reported to be losing the Battle of Canyon, the site of the most important battle of the war with the Ultra Kingdom. If Ice and Fire lost that battle, they could potentially lose the war.

Ronan and Rhetta had been called up to the front line in hopes that they could turn the battle back in their favor. Rhetta asked that Jason and Carson come so that they would have a better chance in case Buzzwole showed up, and once they agreed, Kara volunteered as well, much to Rhetta's dismay. Ronan, wanting to continue working with his students, brought Kai and Liam.

The fact that Ronan hadn't brought her concerned Steph, but that wasn't her main concern. Steph knew it was probably better she stayed at the kingdoms so she could get a break from his teaching.

She was worried about her family, but that wasn't what was eating at her.

"I took my trial," she mumbled at low level.

The Umbreon raised an eyebrow. "With Ronan?"

"On my own," she admitted with a sigh.

"I see."

"I hope I didn't insult or question your teaching methods, and if I did, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to. I just...really wanted to evolve."

Aris nodded. "You know, everyone evolves when they're ready to. You may think you're ready, but you might not be. Do you really think you're ready to evolve?"

Steph fell silent for a few seconds, contemplating the question. "No."

"Why is that, do you think?"

She bit her lip, tears forming in her eyes. "Everything has been changing, lately. I used to be the strongest, and everyone knew it. Back at home, I was the M-V-P on the Varsity Battle Team. Then, I come here and I'm not the strongest anymore."

"There's always going to be someone stronger than you, Stephanie." He looked at her reflection in the water. "It's the most basic life lesson of being a pokemon. Fire beats grass, grass beats water, and water beats fire. The cycle constantly goes on."

"It's not just my strength. Back home, I was the most ready to evolve. My friends were all so worried and nervous about what they were going to evolve into, but I knew. Yet, here it turns out I'm the least ready."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Have you figured out what's holding you back?"

Steph chuckled, taking it as a joke. "Everyone's been saying that I just need to figure out what's holding me back and then I'll be able to evolve. Like it's just so easy! But I don't know! I don't even have a clue!"

Aris closed his eyes and tilted his head toward the sky, memories filling his thoughts. "You remind me of someone, someone I trained before the Libras. Like you, she had something keeping her from reaching her full potential. She didn't know what it was for a long time, and even after figuring it out, it was still holding her back."

"What was it?" Stephanie asked.

"I think I should let her keep that to herself, but she eventually did overcome her struggle and became much more powerful than she was before. You are similar to her, and just like her you have so much potential hidden inside you."

"I should've been able to easily beat Leona today," she sighed, shaking her head at herself.

"Leona's getting stronger just like you are, but you were simply off your game today. You are clever and passionate and can take anything that's thrown at you." Aris stood on his paws and motioned for Steph to stand up. "With a little more work, we should be able to get you ready for your trial in no time. How about you and I get back to training?"

Aris met her green eyes, and in them, he saw his student. Passion and determination filled her eyes and she smiled the same way Abbie's did. The image of the Umbreon flashed in his mind, and he smiled, but he shook away the memory to focus on Stephanie.

…

Powerful roars, clashing armor, and explosions sounded through the air. Pokemon, new pokemon, walked around the camp. Some battled, others were being fitted with armor, but most were sitting and talking. Not far away was the front line of battle, and a gloomy and fearful atmosphere sat above it. There, pokemon were risking their lives against the Ultra Kingdom for the freedom of the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom. Yet, despite that, the camp seemed full of liveliness and inspiration.

Liam's eyes widened at the large and powerful pokemon. Among them was a sturdy Gigalith, a muscular Incineroar, and a scaly Kommo-o. He even spotted a Ditto, who occasionally changed form to accommodate to space. Some pokemon, who had just returned from the battlefield, still wore their armor with the snowflake and fire symbols carved in the side. Others were simply walking around without it on, enjoying the cold weather.

Rhetta's friends all enjoyed Carson, especially some of the girls who found him attractive in his newly fitted armor. Kara's friends, mostly girls, loved Jason, or rather loved the fact that they had someone to ship Kara with. While the Ninetales had never been up at the Front Line, she had many friends who were soldiers. Carson and Jason attracted much more attention than just the girls' friends due to the colored bands on their wrists. The soldiers were eager to meet new Libras because that meant a new hope in defeating the Ultra Kingdoms.

Ronan happened to be a very popular soldier, especially with the younger ones who he had trained. They all stopped by to talk to him, and in doing so they met Kai and Liam, who attracted less attention than Carson and Jason. They hadn't evolved and received their power yet, which meant no colored bands would grab anyone's attention.

Kai, however, was eager as he again met Logan, a midnight form Lycanroc. Logan had been called up after only a few lessons with Kai, and the Rockruff hadn't seen him since.

"Hey there, mate!" Logan greeted. "How's that Rock Tomb comin' along?"

"It's going great!" Kai stated happily.

"Then you wouldn't mind showing me, would you?"

"Of course not."

Everyone backed up to give Kai some space. The Rockruff aimed at Logan and released energy from his heart. The rock type energy passed through his skin and formed five large boulders in the air. He tossed his head in the direction he wanted the rocks to go, and they followed his lead.

Logan, having amply time to prepare, simply jumped up on one of the flying boulders and pushed off to avoid the other ones. They crashed into the ground, denting it severely, which impressed the Lycanroc.

"That's pretty impressive, mate," Logan said honestly with an amazed smile. "It's powerful. If ya keep workin' on your speed, it'll be perfect."

After a good hour of talking, catching up, and meeting new pokemon, Ronan and the Libras retreated to a few tents saved for them. Ronan was given his own, as were the boys, which left Rhetta and Kara with each other. Even though they would've preferred not to, neither wanted to bunk with the guys and there wasn't an extra tent.

"Did you see all those pokemon?" Liam asked in amazement, falling on a sleeping bag and claiming it for himself.

"All I could see was how much Rhetta's friends were flirting with Carson," Jason stated with a chuckle. "Ladies' man, aren't you?"

"Carson!" Rhetta called from outside. "Do you think you can come help me move some crates to the mess hall?"

"Oh that's right," Kai remembered, raising his eyebrows. "He's already got a girlfriend."

"Shut it," Carson barked, unable to hide the slight smile and blush on his face as he left the tent.

"This armor is very uncomfortable," Kai complain. He shook off the metal plates on his legs and had Liam help him take off the torso piece.

"At least you get to take it off," Jason added. "I might get called up at any time, so I gotta keep it on."

As they chatted, Rhetta and Carson were busy carrying crates of food to the mess hall. They conversed comfortably until the job was done, but continued to talk. Eventually, they ended up at the far side of camp, closest to the battlefield, where no one could interrupt them. From there, the topic of conversation got meaningful and a lot of thoughts were put into the words.

"Carson," Rhetta began seriously.

"Yeah."

"I don't like talking with a lot of pokemon, but I like talking to you. You're different. You're not afraid to think, to challenge others to question what you question. You thought your kingdom was only teaching you what they wanted you to know, and you trusted them, yet you still went against their rules."

"It was harmless, at first," Carson chuckled. "I just wanted to be given the information without anyone giving me their input. Then, it got a lot more serious and started involving a lot more pokemon than just me."

"Evolution, right?"

"Yeah. Evolution is so important in Equilibrium. The only reason Eevee were even chosen to rule was because they were believed to have the strongest evolutionary line. But, that's not even true anymore. I would've thought that since evolution is so important, we would know about mega evolution. Or, at least, my mom and dad would've told me."

"I noticed something." She turned on her side to look Carson in the eyes. "You're mom, a female Gallade who made an impossible evolution, is someone you look up to. But, why do you want to be like her so badly?"

"Wow, you're asking the hard questions today." He turned on his back and gazed up at the stars and full moon, thinking. "I think it's because she wanted something so badly that she went and got it. I'm her son, and I want to prove to everyone that I deserve to be called her son."

"Carson, no intention of being mean here, but you don't deserve anything unless you earn it."

"Well, then I want to earn her name."

"You shouldn't even want her name. You should want to be your own pokemon and tell everyone else who you are."

"Yeah, but-"

"And who's to say your parents would even be proud of you for mega evolving. They didn't even tell you about it."

"Maybe they were going to...I mean there was this book that we weren't allowed to read until we reached a certain age, and I don't know everything it said, so I don't...I don't really know what they were planning on telling me."

The Zoroark locked eyes with the Lucario, and they were quiet for a long time. Rhetta swallowed and licked her lips. "You know, I'm glad you told me."

"Told you what?" His voice drifted off.

"That you and your friends were the royals. You trusted me, and I didn't have to find out on my own. I think it…"

Rhetta lost her words, leaning closer to Carson. Their eyes slowly closed, and just as they were about to kiss…

A clean snap echoed through the air, causing both pokemon to pull away. They turned their attention to the battlefield, where an opening had formed in the night sky. Two black arms resembling cables, seemingly held together by white ties, emerged from the opening, and at the ends of its arm were six, long, copper-like fingers.

The arms pulled at the wormhole, stretching it open so that a pokemon could come through. A herd of soldiers flocked around Rhetta and Carson, watching as a white glowing star with numerous points poked through. It wiggled until it was free. Unlike Nihilego and Buzzwole, who had entered this world previously, this one couldn't fly. It fell from the opening in the sky, hitting the center of the battlefield and creating electrical sparks that shot into the air.

"It's another beast!"

The camp erupted into chaos. Pokemon dashed throughout, gathering weapons and armor. Once ready, the charged toward the battlefield, ready to help their fellow soldiers fight.

Amongst those preparing was Rhetta. She grabbed Carson's paw and quickly dragged him through the camp, against the traffic of soldiers, and back to their tent. Carson, Liam, and Jason stood outside, watching as more fireworks of electricity exploded in the sky.

"It's another Ultra Beast, isn't it?" Liam asked, trying to hide the fear in his eyes. Memories of the last one he faced popped up in his mind.

Kara emerged from her tent, wearing thin armor. "Yup. This one's called Xurkitree. An electric type, which means you're up again, Jason."

"With all these Ultra Beasts coming around, I'm missing out on some valuable team building opportunities," Kai chuckled.

"This isn't a joke," Kara explained. "If we lose this battle, we're going to start losing the war."

Kai nodded. "I know, but sometimes you've gotta relax. Could help when you're battling."

The Ninetales smiled, putting the last layer of metal on her leg. "Noted."

"Libras!" A Greninja ran up to them. The only armor he wore was a thick plate over his chest and a helmet on his head. "They're already advancing."

"The Ultra Beast just showed up five minutes ago!" Rhetta growled. "This isn't good."

"We might have to evacuate the camp." Ronan looked over the battlefield, watching as the storm of dust came closer.

"Wait, wait, wait, evacuate?" Kai suddenly noticed the panic that spread through the camp. "But, we just got here."

"Well now you can just get everyone out," Ronan instructed. "You and Liam stay here, stay out of trouble, and if we call for an evacuation, help everyone get out."

"Wait, what?" Kai looked up from adjusting his armor. "I thought we were going to help fight. Isn't that why we came?"

"You came so that I could continue training with you. The pokemon we're fighting are ruthless warriors, and until I believe you're ready to face them, you stay behind."

"C'mon guys," Rhetta called to the evolved Libras. "Let's go before they get any closer."

Rhetta, Kara, Carson, and Jason hurried off, heading straight for the battlefield and leaving Liam and Kai behind.

"You'll get your chance," Ronan assured before following another herd of soldiers into battle.

Once Ronan was out of sight, Kai leaned to Liam and whispered. "We'll wait a little bit and then follow 'em."

Cries from Nihilego echoed in Liam's ears, as if he was back with the beast. "I'll stay here," he replied cooly.

"Dude, c'mon. Not you too."

"Ronan said we're not ready, and if that's the case I don't want to go."

"You can't be serious."

"I am."

Liam turned to walk away, but Kai stood in his path. "What's the real reason?" the Rockruff asked, eyebrows furrowed.

The Eevee looked at the ground and grumbled.

"You're gonna have to speak up, dude."

"I'm scared," he said, barely loud enough to hear. He met Kai's blue eyes with his brown ones. "How are you not scared?"

Kai's ears rose in confusion. He had never thought about being scared before. "I...I don't-uh-"

"How could you possibly want to go out there? We're unevolved cubs! Do you understand that this is real? This is the only life you get! It's not a battle where you faint and wake up later! If you die, that's it!"

Kai furrowed his eyebrows, looking at Liam with question. "Are you really that scared?"

"I hear Ronan and Aris say how courageous you are," he sighed. "How are you not afraid?"

"I am afraid, but I don't let it stop me." He gestured to the battlefield, which had become more chaotic since the beast appeared. "I look out there and imagining myself in the middle of that mess, possibly dying, is scary. But I'm willing to go out there and fight. I _want_ to go out there and fight."

Liam shook his head, not understanding what Kai was saying.

"Listen, Liam. Just because I have courage doesn't mean I don't have fear. I just believe that some things are more important than being afraid."

"Afraid or not, we're not strong enough to beat them Kai. Not as a Rockruff. Not as an Eevee."

"Hm," Kai hummed in realization. "This is about evolution, too, isn't it."

"Tch. Isn't it always?"

"Look, dude, you should be what you want. So what if the test said Espeon? If you want an Umbreon, be an Umbreon."

After figuring that Liam wasn't going to respond, Kai stood up and retreated into the tent. The Eevee followed ten minutes later, and together they sat on the firm beds, waiting for any news on the battle.

Hours passed by in silence. Every thirty minutes or so, either Liam or Kai would check on the situation outside. Occasionally, they were asked to do a random duty like dropping off a letter for a busy soldier or packing away food. Despite doing absolutely nothing, they weren't bored. Their hearts were beating hard with worry and anxiety.

Eventually, though, they were both frantically called to the mess hall. A soldier from the front line (which had been edging closer to the camp) returned with a message from the generals that called for a retreat. Kai and Liam exchanged worried glances before they were pushed into helping. They found themselves carrying folded tents and crates to moving carts. The events passed by in a blur, and eventually only a quarter of the camp remained standing.

That's when a cackling shriek echoed through the air like electricity. Seconds later, a mass of black cables with a pointy, star-shaped head tumbled into the remaining portion of the camp. It stumbled forward on its hands and feet, unable to summon the balance to remain upright, while it's plug-like tail whipped the air. With every step, electricity burst forth from its body and shredded through nearby tents.

Most were paralyzed with fear once they first laid eyes on the beast. Very few had seen one, but not one pokemon expected it to be as powerful as it was. Several soldiers charged the beast, attempting to distract it, while a general barked out orders to check the rest of the camp and tell everyone to evacuate.

Liam couldn't hear anything but the sound of his heart beating rapidly in his ears. He watched in horror, but Kai watched its battling style in amazement.

Xurkitree didn't fight like a normal pokemon. Its body was flimsy and lacked balance. The only thing that seemed to keep it from falling apart were the cable tie appendages around its arms and legs. It quickly twisted around, letting its arm flail through the air and smack another pokemon off balance. It backed away and tried to circle around the soldiers, but they only got in its way.

It screeched, sending a cackling electrical soundwave through the air. It released a Discharge, severely shocking the soldiers close to it and rendering them unconscious.

Kai froze as the beast looked up and focused its attention on both him and Liam. It dropped on its hands and slowly approached them. As the Rockruff began to back away, the Eevee stayed in his spot.

"Liam," Kai called in a whispered. "Liam!"

In its fear, it recognized the two life sources nearby and knew they weren't there to sit on the sidelines. It had successfully avoided the other four, but, of course, two more stood in its way. There were a lot more than there used to be. Now, it couldn't run. It had to fight. Xurkitree screeched again and charged at the Eevee.

Liam couldn't move. It was only by a stroke of luck that someone dashed by and pulled him out of the way before Xurkitree collided into him. His weight was picked up with such ease that he thought the beast had hit him, but soon realized that it was his teacher who had saved him.

"Get them out of here!" Ronan directed to a soldier standing by. He placed Liam back on the ground and protectively stood in front him. "You better hurry."

Ronan squatted low to the ground in an attacking stance, something Liam had never seen before as the Greninja typically stood up straight, and summoned shurikens of water in his webbed hands. A split second later, he threw a storm of them at Xurkitree while circling around it.

The water type move didn't do much to the electric type other than frighten it. It responded to the attacks by spraying electricity from its body, which in turn made contact with the Water Shuriken and whipped up clouds of smoke.

Upon hearing the sound of the collision, Liam picked a random direction and bolted. The only thing that controlled his actions was fear.

"Wait, wait!" Kai pulled against the soldier who was leading him away from the battle. "We can't leave him!"

"Ronan told me to get you out of here!"

Xurikitree's cry filled the air, and seconds later the ground became coated in a static yellow aura. Dust flew into the air, combining with the smoke and creating a thick cloud.

Ronan created a sword of dark energy in his hands and charged at Xurkitree. He carefully aimed the Night Slash focused all of his efforts, but it saw the attack coming long before hand.

The beast twisted its body, smacking Ronan in the stomach with its thick arm. The Night Slash sword immediately shattered into pieces, and the Greninja was thrown high into the air. Xurkitree caught him just before he hit the ground and charged electricity in its body as it coiled its chord-like arms around the water type. Then, with its prey trapped, it released the stored electricity.

Ronan's screams echoed through the air. Electricity coursed through his veins, tearing the water type energy in his body apart. He felt as if his bones were being shredded and his mind fried to a crisp.

Kai's ears flattened against his head and his eyes widened. He turned back, again resisting the soldier who was trying to get him away from the battle. His stomach dropped when he caught sight of his teacher who was writhing and screaming in pain as an electric storm surrounded him and Xurkitree.

As moonlight shone on the young Rockruff, his eyes of fear changed to eyes of determination. He bolted from the soldier's side as a cloud of smoke and dust covered him. A fire sparked in the back of his throat, rushing into his mouth and surrounding his teeth. He jumped and bit down on Xurkitree's shoulder, ignoring the electric shock that coursed through his body.

More annoyed than it was hurt, Xurkitree shrieked and its body flailed, knocking Kai to the ground with ease. It turned its head to the Puppy pokemon, who was quickly standing himself back up, and recognized his aura. Xurkitree, finding a new prey, threw Ronan on the ground like an old toy it didn't want anymore.

Ronan couldn't get back up fast enough. He wearily opened his eyes, vision blurry and brain fried, and demanded, "Kai, run!"

Kai didn't, and consequently he was hit with a powerful Discharge that threw him back to the ground. Being a rock type meant electric type moves shouldn't hurt him as much, but the Ultra Beast was far beyond any power he had seen or heard of. He was the one with a serious disadvantage. He stood back up, growling as Xurkitree approached him yet again. He knew he couldn't beat it by himself. At least, not as a Rockruff.

The moonlight shone on him, as if telling him to evolve, but it was night. He hadn't made his decision. His dad wanted him to be a midday Lycanroc, and though his father didn't know about the midnight form, Kai knew his dad wanted them to share an experience.

"Kai, get out of here! Now!"

Xurkitree slashed Ronan again, and that's when Kai lost it. If evolving was the only way to beat this beast, then evolving was what he had to do. _If I want to be a midnight form, that's what I need to be._

He howled as energy from the moonlight flooded his system. A white aura sounded him, and the pitch of his howl transformed as his physical appearance did. His body stretched, giving him strong back legs and thin, long forelegs with large white paws. His fur changed from brown to red and white, and the rocks on his collar fell off. A large mane of white fur grew from the back of his neck and extended over his head, hanging in front of his face. The sound that rang through the air changed from a high-pitched cry to a deep, spine-chilling howl.

When Kai opened his eyes, they were no long blue, but a hypnotic, pinkish-red color.

Xurkitree cackled again, falling forward and catching itself on its hands. Kai mimicked the motion and snarled, baring his sharp fangs. They slowly circled around each other, attempting to sense one another's weaknesses. Kai, however, was also getting closer to his teacher. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the badly bruised Greninja who was struggling to even breathe as he laid still on the ground. Blood and dirt lathered his skin.

Without warning, the Ultra Beast charged, crawling forward while flailing its head.

Kai responded quickly, raising his glowing white paws up into the air and slamming them on the ground. Chunks of earth jutted up from the ground, ramming into Xurkitree's stomach and throwing it into the air. Kai then dropped on all fours and began to scour the small mountains with his Rock Climb. At the top, he jumped with a half-ready Rock Tomb in his paws and knocked it against Xurkitree. He pushed away to avoid any counter-attacks and landed safely back on the ground.

Xurkitree fell to the ground like an asteroid, shaking the earth upon impact. But, it simply cackled and stood back up, releasing another Discharge in all directions.

Kai was going to dodge, but the quietest sigh of pain rang in his ears. He launched himself off his back feet and reached Ronan in the nick of time. He covered the water type and was consequently shocked by Discharge. Though it didn't cause a sufficient amount of damage to his newly evolved self, it did hurt.

A fierce, groan-like noise startled Xurkitree, which in turn made it stop releasing its Discharge. When it saw the pokemon who had growled, it knew it was out-matched. The last Kai saw of Xurkitree was it running away hastily. He shook off the electricity that remained dancing on his skin and sighed, exhausted. After blinking a few times and calming down, his swirling eyes changed back to a nice blue color.

A hot breath rushed on his neck. He jumped and turned around, a Rock Tomb already forming in his paws, only to meet eyes with strange pokemon. It had hooves for hands, a bell for a tail, and two horns that protruded from a red shell on its head.

"Tapu Bulu," Kai chuckled, scratching one ear sheepishly. "Of course you're here."

The Tapu extended both arms, holding a hexagonal stone between his hooves. Kai nodded as he took it, understanding exactly what was going on. As soon as it touched his paw, three bands stained his fur with the outer two being black and the middle being a dull red.

Tapu Bulu huffed and turned to leave, which surprised Kai. "Hey, wait!" He dropped on all fours and ran in front of Tapu Bulu, blocking the way. "Aren't you supposed to say something?"

The Tapu shook his head.

Kai's shoulders sagged in disappointment and he frowned. "Really? Don't you give advise or something? Maybe tell me something about myself?"

"Of course I do," Tapu Bulu chuckled with a low voice. "I was just messing with you."

The Lycanroc laughed at himself, mostly relieved.

"You're the perfect blend between a strategic battler and a fun-loving battler. That combination just may make you the strongest of all the Libras. That being said, make sure you watch out for the others."

"Thank you, Tapu Bulu."

"You're welcome, Kai Brookstone. I'd hurry up and help Ronan if I were you. Xurkitree did some damage to him."

Without bidding farewell to Tapu Bulu, Kai's attention shifted to the beaten water type, and he swiftly moved to help. Ronan groaned as his deep wounds stretched when Kai pulled on his arms to make him stand. Then, the Lycanroc let Ronan lean on him as they walked.

"You did well, Kai," Ronan choked, smiling through the pain.

"Just hang on," Kai replied with desperation, though he felt relief that Ronan was still able to talk. "Can you breathe okay?"

Ronan stumbled, and probably would've fallen had Kai not been there. "Don't worry. I've suffered worse injuries from your attacks."

"I highly doubt it. Xurkitree is more powerful than I thought it would be."

"So are you now that you've evolved." Ronan smiled genuinely at Kai, trying to get used to him as a Lycanroc. "Are you happy with you're evolution?"

He stared at his unusual paw, frowning. "Yeah."

"You don't sound happy."

Kai shook his head. "It's just...my dad was really looking forward to me becoming midday Lycanroc. He wanted to teach me everything he knew. But...I knew this is what I had to become."

"You've learned a lot. Perhaps you can help Liam learn something too."


	16. Chapter 15

**Hi guys! I know it's been a long time since I've posted (nearly two months! Yikes). Thank you all for being so patient with me. I'm in the middle of rewriting, and I should be done soon! Just a reminder that you don't have to reread the chapters if you don't want to. When everything is rewritten, I'll give you a list of things that have changed, and I might even publish an additional chapter (that will be deleted soon after) which will tell you all the changes. It shouldn't be much though.**

 **Thank you for all your support! I hope you enjoy...**

* * *

 **Chapter 15**

 **Ultra Kingdom**

He didn't know where to go. Dust and smoke covered the surrounding fights. He could hear the sound of colliding moves and shouts nearby. The fight was still going on, and in the chaos he had gotten lost.

Liam desperately searched for cover, occasionally being hit by a random pokemon. Fear clouded his judgment. He couldn't be sure who was on his team and who was against him. All he could do was run. The thick armor Ronan had given him was slowing him down, and though it did protect him from the randomly aimed projectiles, he ditched it. He wanted to get away as fast as he could.

He immediately regretted losing the armor as a ball of green aura nailed him in the ribs. He lost his balance and fell on the ground, rolling a couple times before friction stopped him.

"Fire and Ice, retreat!"

Suddenly, the fighting got quieter as cries of victory got louder. Liam was disoriented and didn't hear the call to retreat. He simply stood up and kept running, trying to find his way out of the chaos.

When the dust finally cleared and he slowed to a walk, he found that he was one of the lucky ones.

Liam saw the destruction the war had caused. The land was barren and devoid of life. The battlefield was rough and brown, filled with random scraps of armor. A flag stood tall, waving in the moonlight and bearing the symbol of Nihilego. Liam knew that it meant Ultra Kingdom victory, and that sent more fear into his heart.

He backtracked the way he came, only to trip and somersault into the ground. His aching muscles and fear-clouded mind paralyzed him. He couldn't get up. His mind couldn't process thoughts or command his body. It simply yelled at him as if they were two different pokemon.

 _You're going to die! You're going to die out here and all you're doing is laying on the ground like a coward!_

 _What if I die out here?_

 _They're all going to miss me. Mom and Dad. Stephanie and Jason and Carson and Kai. Leona. Can't I live for them?_

 _Carson begged for your help against Nihilego! And you did nothing!_

 _Why am I so scared?_

 _I can't go anywhere like this._

Liam's head rose in confusion, and his breathing slowed. He had heard the voice among his thoughts, but the last one didn't belong to him. He waited, his body slowly calming down and allowing him to breathe somewhat normally, with an occasional hiccup.

 _I'm going to die out here._

This time, he stood up. He could hear thoughts, thoughts that weren't his. They belong to a girl, and like him she also had let thoughts of dying consume her, yet she didn't sound scared. Liam, though he didn't know it, was slowly forgetting his own fear.

He followed her echoing thoughts as she attempted to come up with a way to survive. Liam could only guess why she was dying as her thoughts began to quicken. It was almost as if she were slipping into sleep, but she sounded like she was trying to fight it. She forced herself to keep thinking, even if it was about something random like what she ate for breakfast.

 _Just don't fall asleep. My favorite color is red. I live in Venom City. My favorite berry is an Iapapa berry._

When Liam finally found the girl amongst the multiple fallen soldiers, he understood just why her thoughts wavered as much as they did. She was armorless, leaving her blue-black skin exposed. As a result she had received a fatal injury. A spear of ice had pierced her left side, leaving her stuck on the ground and unable to move. With a white claw, she carefully touched the bloody skin around the icicle protruding from her body. She winced and let out a gasp of pain, letting her head fall back to the ground. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the Weavile's leg was broken.

Liam didn't waste a second of time. He dashed to her and the last of his fear slipped away from him. All he cared about was helping the injured pokemon.

Once the Weavile saw him, however, she was not pleased. "Get away from me!" she barked with a sharp voice, trying to push herself away from him.

"It's okay, it's okay. I promise I just want to help."

Whether she believed him or not, she couldn't exactly avoid his help. The pain prevented her from moving very much.

"Here, I can help." He found a broken piece of metal and used the dying embers of small fires to heat it up.

She growled. "If you think that you're going to-"

"I swear I'm not going to hurt you."

He gently touched her arm and she went still. Her untrusting and defensive gaze met his kind and honest eyes. Growling, she stopped resisting and laid her head back on the ground.

Liam quickly went to work. He used the hot metal to melt the ice, relieving the pressure from her side, and was careful not to let it touch her skin and burn her. Then, he took metal armor pieces from the battlefield, ripped the soft fabric from inside, and used that to bandage her wound. After finishing with that, he splinted her leg and apologized for causing her pain as he did so.

"I'm going to try to carry you and find somewhere to get you better care. It might hurt you a little when I pick you up."

Slowly, but less painfully, he got the Weavile on his back and began walking. Not once did it occur to him that she could be the enemy.

"Thank you," she muttered weakly, smiling. "My name's Dahlia."

"I'm Liam," he responded, determined to find someone to help her.

"You're either very brave, or very stupid to come all the way out to the middle of the battlefield."

"I'm assuming the same goes for you."

Dahlia chuckled, then winced.

"Be careful. Save your energy."

"I need to stay awake."

Within minutes, she was out cold. Liam normally would've panicked, but he could feel her heartbeat and steady breathing on his back, indicating that she was fine. He trudged on for almost an hour and a camp soon came into his sights. Filled with hope, he picked up the pace. Getting her medical attention was all that occupied his thoughts.

When Liam finally got close enough, he shouted to the guards, "Hey! Hey I have a girl here!"

They saw him and pointed their weapons at him. "Stay right where you are! Don't move!"

Liam stopped dead in his tracks. "I found this girl on the battlefield and she's hurt. I did what I could, but she needs real medical help."

One guard lowered his weapon and approached the Eevee, finally recognizing the Weavile on his back. "Princess Dahlia."

"Yes! She said that was her name."

"Bring her in immediately."

The guards opened the gate to camp and led Liam through. He was too concerned with Dahlia to see the Ultra Kingdom flags scattered throughout. He was led to a first aid tent, where a couple of nurses took the Weavile from his back and placed her on an examination table. He waited on a chair in the corner as the nurses removed his makeshift bandage and replaced it with something better.

"How was she when you found her?" a nurse asked, focusing as she stitched Dahlia's wound.

"She was laying on the ground with a huge icicle sticking out of her side," Liam responded, "and her leg was broken."

"Did you see who did it?"

He shook his head. "I think I found her a while after it happened."

"Most likely one of the Terrams," one nurses growled to the other.

The other nodded in agreement. "They'd be ones to do something like this."

Liam was about to speak up and question them when Dahlia attempted to sit up. She groaned in pain and was pushed back down by the nurses. "Where's the Eevee? He saved me. Where is he?"

"He right over there." The nurses pointed to Liam in the corner, but gestured that he stay there. "We're going to be transporting you back to Venom City with the next train in ten minutes."

"He's coming too," Dahlia insisted.

And just like that, Liam was on a train with the girl he had just saved and heading somewhere he didn't know. Not once did he think to ask himself what he was doing, who he was with, or how he was going to get home. Everything but the girl completely slipped his mind.

"Thank you, again, for helping me." Dahlia sat up and smiled at the Eevee. "You seem to know quite a bit about first aid."

He shrugged. "It can come in handy when someone else needs help."

"The nurse told me that if you hadn't showed up, I might not have survived. So thank you, uh, sorry. What did you say your name was?"

"Liam, and you're welcome. I'm just glad I could help." There was a brief moment of silence where they simply smiled at each other. "So, uh, where exactly are we going again."

"Venom City," she answered, "the heart of Ultra Kingdom."

…

"Hey, Steph. Is it okay if I sit with you?"

Stephanie turned her head to see Leonardo standing a few feet away. She nodded and returned to staring at the river, observing the evolution stones embedded in the bottom.

"Leona said you've been a little...distracted lately. Do you maybe want to talk about it?"

"No, but thank you." Her gaze didn't leave the water.

"Well, do you think I could talk?"

"If you want to."

Leo frowned. "I'm from the Tribe Lands," he stated simply, knowing it would get her attention.

Steph's face brightened. "You're from the Tribe Lands?"

"Oh, did that get your attention?"

She ignored his question. "You were born in the same place as my mom! That's how you know how to fight!"

"Excellent observation," he said sarcastically. He sat down beside Steph, setting his gaze on the water.

"Why did you leave? It's so nice there, and there's beautiful traditions and customs."

"Would you have left your home and moved there?"

She thought about it. "Well, no of course not, but how does that help your argument?"

Leo eyes drew vacant as he recalled memories from the past. "That's because your home feels like, well, a home. My home...didn't. My dad's the tribe leader, and probably the strongest pokemon in the entire tribe, but I'm not."

"There's always going to be someone stronger than you. Aris taught me that, and it seems like good advice."

"That's nature." Leo laughed at his reflection. "From the beginning, I knew that I was never going to be the best, but I was okay with that. But, growing up in the Tribe Lands means growing up to be like the Wild One, growing up to be strong, but I was probably the weakest."

Steph's chest tightened with concern for Leo, taking the place of her own problems and anxiety.

"I wasn't...doing too well for a while. I was stressed, barely eating and barely sleeping, and I pushed myself way too hard." He curled his tail around the front of his body, forgetting that Steph was listening. "I had convinced myself that I was fine, that I could fight and win, but I knew in the back of my mind that what I was doing wasn't healthy. On the day of a fighting tournament, I was exhausted, and I collapsed."

"Leo," Steph gasped. Her heart hurt for him.

"My body felt like it was burning, and it took weeks for me to recover. After that happened, my mom thought it would best if we moved to the city, away from the tribe, away from the burden of having to live up to the Wild One. My dad still had responsibilities to the tribe, so he stayed and my mom and I moved to Equilibrium." The fur on his cheeks was wet from tears. "It's a lot less stressful, but I still miss my home."

Leo was snapped from his trance as Stephanie placed her head against his collar. She hugged him with one leg, and paced her other paw on his. Leo paused for a second, shocked, but eventually he hugged her back. He felt warmth in his heart.

"Why are you telling me this?" Steph asked, not moving from Leo's embrace. "You know you didn't have to."

"I wanted you to feel better about this evolution and trials thing, and I thought if I told you about my struggle, you might see that you're not alone."

She pulled away from his hug just slightly, enough to still hold onto him while also looking into his eyes. "Thank you, Leonardo."

"Anytime." He smiled, staring into her eyes for few moments. "Ya know, your eyes look pretty when they're green, but I think I prefer them the way they are."

Steph glanced down at her reflection longingly. "Me too." In her mind, all she could think was how she missed her home.

"I didn't think your eyes were green."

She looked back and found her teacher standing behind her. "Uh, no, they're not. I, uh, take an allergy medication and the green eyes are a side effect."

"Not to worry," Aris voiced supportively, believing the lie. "Plenty of pokemon need allergy medication. Are you ready for some more training?"

Leo stood and stretched his legs. "I guess that's my cue to leave. Good luck Steph. I'll be back for training later, Aris."

Steph waved. "Bye Leo."

"Stephanie, today I thought we would battle. I hope you can get your bearings quickly."

"What do you-"

Before she could finish her question, a psychic force surrounded her. Zen threw her up into the air, adding a spin on her, and waited. She flipped as she flew higher, and once she reached the peak, she began to free fall back toward the earth. In order to protect her, her instincts took over. Once she was a few feet from the ground, she launched a rapid fire of Shadow Balls and softened her landing with the kickback.

"What was that?!" she asked, breathing heavily.

"You've already seen what you trial is, so fighting in a one-on-one battle is the best way to prepare you."

Again, without warning, he attacked. He pivoted on his front legs and aimed an Iron Tail at Steph. She stumbled backward, narrowly avoiding the attack, but was hit dead on by the second swing.

She managed to land on her paws, and as she did she fired three Shadow Balls at Aris. He dodged them all with ease, and charged her with another Iron Tail.

The image of the Absol flashed in her mind and paralyzed her muscles. She received the critical blow against her shoulder and dove into the ground. She snapped back into reality and picked herself back up just in time to counteract the next Iron Tail with her own.

Of course, Aris was far more experienced than her. His Iron Tail was a diversion for his Shadow Ball, which he fired directly at the ground. He used the cover from the flying dirt and smoke to kick down Steph's legs and draw back.

Disoriented, she stood back up and ferociously turned, trying to find her opponent. All she caught were randomly placed glimpses of his black fur, to which she fired her Shadow Ball at.

"You have to use your other senses to find me!" Aris shouted, hoping it would help the Eevee.

"Don't say anything!" she barked. "I have to do this on my own."

Even though she opposed his advice, she listened to the one piece he gave. She focused her senses, closed her eyes, and listened. _You can do it. Listen_. She listened, but not with her ears. In her chest, she could feel a mixture of curiosity and hope, but it wasn't her own. The feeling seemed to shift around her chest, matching with the sound of pawsteps in her ears.

He didn't even see it coming. A blue electric orb soared through the air, making contact with Aris. An electric current traveled through his body and sent him into the ground. He growled in pain, shaking his body to get rid of the electricity, and stood back up.

Steph stood opposite to him, seemingly ready to attack, but her expression was blank. "Aris," she called absent-mindedly.

"Stephanie? Is something wrong?"

"I think something happened."

She looked up and met his red eyes with her green ones. Aris became worried, thinking that he might've seriously hurt her. In half a second, he was by her side, ready in case she fainted.

"Do I need to take you to the infirmary?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm fine."

He sighed in relief. "Good. You know, that was a powerful Hidden Power you shot at me, and with incredible accuracy. Was my advice helpful?"

"I think I was sensing where you were," she forced out.

Aris raised an eyebrow and asked, "How did you surmise that?"

"I feeling something, emotions, but they weren't mine."  
"Stephanie, are you sure? It doesn't sound like-"

"I'm sure." She looked him dead in the eyes. "I'm absolutely sure."

"Hm." He ran through several possibilities in his head, trying to find a solution. "Well, one of Solgaleo's psychic powers is the ability to sense and interpret emotions in others."

"Is that what I was doing?" Her eyes lit up, hopeful that she wasn't failing as much as she believed.

"You haven't evolved yet, so it seems unlikely."

"But I hit you, dead on. And it was unlikely that a Libra would evolve without going through their trial first, but Carson did. That has to be what happened, Aris."

He thought about it, glancing over to the Eevee. The light in her eyes, the light that reminded him of someone else's determination and passion, made him hopeful as well. "It could be, but don't have your heart set on it. We'll have to try something to see if it is."

She smiled happily, closing her eyes and showing her teeth. The picture of her happiness made Aris smile as well. He loved Steph's personality.

…

He did he best to act normal. He had just saved a citizen of the Ultra Kingdom, and he obviously wasn't suspected to be with Ice and Fire. Dahlia offered to give him a tour of the castle, and he reluctantly agreed, thinking maybe he could get information or at least a way to get home.

"This is the dining hall. A lot of pokemon are going to be showing up later for the dinner my dad's throwing for me." Dahlia sat down in the chair next to the head of the table, careful not to stretch her stitches.

"It's busy in here." Liam glanced around, moving out of the way of the maids who were quickly preparing the table. However, all he concerned himself with was Dahlia. "I don't think you should be walking around."

"Relax Liam," she chuckled. "I'm being careful."

He smiled, still a bit worried, but sat down on the bench next to her.

"So...what made you decide to help me?"

Liam responded with a questioning and shocked gaze. "Why wouldn't I help you?"

"C'mon." She rolled her eyes. "A soldier walking through a battlefield somehow miraculously stumbles upon me. Seems unlikely."

"Honestly, I was just trying to find someone who could help me," he lied. He couldn't bring himself to admit that he was running away, not to her, and certainly not to himself. "I saw you, and I couldn't just leave you to die."

"I thought I was going to die." She chuckled, almost as if it was a joke, but then she raised an eyebrow at the Eevee. "So you really didn't come all the way out there to rescue me because I'm the princess?"

Liam's ears shot up. "You're the princess? But, I thought Kara was."

"Who's Kara?"

Their conversation was interrupted by a high-pitched cry screech followed by a cackling electric noise. A pokemon with long white tentacles pushed open the door and headed straight Liam and Dahlia. Following was a pokemon barreling forward on all fours, swinging its white star head as its cable-like arms and legs carried it.

Dahlia smiled happily and jumped off her chair, ignoring the pain in her side. "Nihilego! Xurkitree!"

The beasts paused their game with each other and looked to Dahlia. They cried joyously and ran up to the Weavile. Nihilego hugged her with its tentacles while Xurkitree sat by and let her pet it with her claw.

"Liam, c'mere!" Dahlia encouraged, happily interacting with the Ultra Beasts. "I bet you've never-Liam?"

The Eevee stood in an attacking stance, eyes full of fear. He looked ready to attack, but the terrifying memories of the Ultra Beasts left him paralyzed. He was just waiting for them to attack him.

Dahlia approached him carefully. "Liam, what's wrong?" She noticed how his eyes didn't leave the beasts. "Hey, it's okay. Some pokemon still don't know, but the Ultra Beasts are totally fine. Come look."

She took his paw, immediately calming his nerves. He resisted her pull at first, but the trustworthy look in her eyes convinced him. Slightly shaking, he let himself be led to the beasts who were patiently waiting.

"Just hold your paw out," Dahlia instructed and demonstrated. "If you're calm, they're calm."

Liam nodded and did as he was told. Nihilego approached first, touching his paw with its tentacle, and made a noise that resembled a laugh. It came at him, and he fearful stepped back, but was met with a friendly hug instead. After a few seconds of Nihilego's warm hug, he laughed.

Xurkitree laughed with a static voice and scooted closer to Liam. The fur on his collar stood up due to the static atmosphere. He attempted to pat it down, but to no success. Xurkitree cackled again and touched its head against Liam's paw. He petted the Ultra Beasts, assuming that's what it wanted.

The harsh memories flooded his brain. Nihilego's ear-piercing screech as it violently released powerful attacks. Xurkitree's cackle as it crawled forward on all fours, shredding through everything that surrounded it.

Liam examined the same pokemon who now surrounded him with friendliness. They were nothing like his previous experiences, nor were they anything like Ronan had told him. "You're not what we think you are," he whispered as he continued to pet Xurkitree.

"Hm?" Dahlia asked, not hearing him.

"Oh, I thought that, uh, Nihilego...I mean how did Nihilego get here? I thought it was back wherever it came from."

"Ah, you heard about that, huh?" She scratched the back of her head, seemingly embarrassed. "Well, that was sorta my fault. Both times."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"That machine I helped build malfunctioned on account of me," she said with a combination of laughter and admittance. "Instead of drawing on my powers it drew on the powers of the Libras and opened the wormholes near them, but it wasn't a total loss."

Liam's heart sped up.

She leaned in close as if telling a secret, but her face displayed seriousness. "As far as we knew, there were only two Libras in the Ice Domain and Fire Kingdom, but it would've taken a lot more power for the machine to pick them up on the radar instead of me. They were way too far, and I am far more powerful than them, so I began to think that maybe there are more Libras."

The Ultra Beasts became a little antsy, set off by Liam's aura.

"So, when we were losing the Battle of Canyon, I wanted to help out. We fixed the machine and tested it out, but it only worked for a small amount of time, which let Nihilego come through. We didn't have time to adjust it and brought it straight to the battlefield. That's when I saw the Libras. I had seen the Ninetales and Zoroark before, but this time there was a Jolteon and a Lucario."

"Are you sure they were Libras?" Liam asked nervously. "I mean, they could've just been random soldiers."

"I saw the colored bands on their wrists. They were the Libras." She gently placed a claw on her bandaged side. "After I sent the order to use the machine, the Ninetales attacked me with the ice you melted, but it was too late. Xurkitree came through, and luckily one of our previous failed attempts to open the wormhole allowed Buzzwole to get to our world as well."

"I heard that Buzzwole attacked the Ice Domain," Liam played cooly, attempting to get more information while hiding his nervousness.

"It did, but it got away and came back to us. It's here, probably wandering around."

"What is this machine you keep talking about?"

"Okay, I'm really not supposed to be telling anyone this…" She pulled him in close. "...but we found another Cosmog, two in fact, and we're using them to open up the wormholes."

"Cosmog?" His stomach dropped as he whispered the name. A picture of a small cloud pokemon writhing in pain popped in his mind. "But, wait, I thought you said the machine ran on some sort of power."

"No, see it picks up on the energy that powerful pokemon like me and the Libras emit. That's how it knows where to open the portal, but it takes a lot of energy. We've only managed to open it four times, and three of them were before we corrected it, but now that it's fully operational it takes more energy than it ever did before."

Nihilego hugged Liam tighter, trying to ease his aura. It could feel his heart beating crazy fast and his shaking muscles. "Why, exactly, did you build the machine in the first place?"

Dahlia frowned. "There's this place called Ultra Space where all the Ultra Beasts live, and from what I know it's awful there. It's surrounded in darkness and there's barely any food or water. I don't describe it very well, but I've gotten glimpses of it, and it just looks bad, Liam." She stroked one of Nihilego's tentacles, and the beast giggled with happiness. "The Tapus just couldn't get along with them so the Ultra Beasts were unfairly locked away. Look how sweet and happy they are here."

Liam couldn't help but smile. He wasn't afraid of Nihilego anymore. In fact, it really was sweet. It probably only attacked him because it was afraid. He couldn't imagine it sitting in complete darkness, starving. Honestly, if given the opportunity and knowing how the Ultra Beasts really are, he probably would've tried to build a machine to set them free, too.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, worriedly scratching the back of his head. "I know I'm asking a lot of questions. I'm just confused."

She smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry about it. You saved my life. The least I could do is answer your questions."

"I know the Libras are powerful, and like you said the machine picks up on that, but you?"

"Wow, you must be from way out in the kingdom. First you don't know I'm a princess and then you don't know I'm Necrozma's descendant."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah. Necrozma, you know? The psychic type Prism Pokemon?"

Liam shook his head, but he was thoroughly interested.

"How do you not know about Necrozma? You're almost like those Equilibrians. I mean, not in a bad way like them but-"

"What's bad about the Equilibrians?" Liam furrowed his eyebrows, reminded that the Ultra Kingdom had kidnapped him not to long ago.

She shook her head and sighed. "They don't tell their citizens anything! I've been there myself and no one knows about different types of governments, or even that other kingdoms exist outside of theirs! They don't know about us, and every time we go there to trade with have to keep it a secret." She growled and cracked her knuckles. "Not to mention how the cubs aren't allowed to know about mega evolution or Z-moves without taking a special class. They're probably being lied to, too."

Liam couldn't help but remember the night he read the restricted book. Carson had convinced him the kingdom was hiding something from him, and it turned out to be true. Had he not learned that pivotal information, he would've never know the power he was capable of.

Perhaps the Ultra Kingdom was actually better than he had been informed. Maybe it was better than his own kingdom.

The door swung open as a tall, stocky, literal spine chilling Beartic walked through, and the room's temperature immediately dropped several degrees. He seemed a bit panicked, but once he saw the Weavile safe and sound, he sighed in relief, creating a small cloud of fog in the chilled air. He hugged her tightly, and she laughed in response.

"I'm so glad you're safe, Dahlia."

She chuckled and awkwardly hugged him back. "Thanks Dad."

The Beartic, being significantly taller, knelt on one knee to look his daughter in the eyes. "I don't know what I would've done if you didn't make it."

She was a little embarrassed because Liam was watching, so she shyly moved her Dad's large paws off her shoulders. "I did make it, and it's all thanks to him." She turned around and gestured to her new friend.

The Beartic didn't hesitate to turn to Liam, as he almost didn't notice the Eevee standing there when he walked in. At first, the ice type glanced curiously at the small pokemon. Liam awkwardly smiled and shrank back, and the Beartic raised an eyebrow at this. The Eevee looked familiar, but he held his large paw out in gratitude. "Thank you, young man. I owe you a great debt."

He awkwardly shook paws with the ice type, feeling a chill rush through his body from the low temperature of the Beartic. "It was no problem. I couldn't leave a pokemon in need."

"I was told that if you hadn't done such an excellent job treating her wounds, she wouldn't have made it. Again, my sincerest thanks."

He scratched the back of his head. "I just used what was available, and honestly I think the only reason she survived was because of her strength."

Dahlia blushed and smiled.

The Beartic stood back up to his full height and placed his fists on his hips. "Tell me lad, have you ever thought about joining the medical unit?"

"Oh, no I couldn't. Technically I wasn't even supposed to be on the battlefield in the first place."

Both ice types furrowed their eyebrows.

"So what you're saying is," the Beartic began, "is that you disobeyed an order?"

"No, I wasn't exactly ordered to stay off the battlefield. My teacher only brought me because he said I needed more work and he would train me when he wasn't fighting."

"So you're not even in the army to begin with?" Dahlia asked with a slight smile on her face. She realized the bravery it took for him to risk his life when it was something he didn't do on a day-to-day basis. _He's impressive._

The door swung open and a cream-coated feline pokemon with a red jewel on her forehead walked through. Upon spotting the Beartic, she sighed in relief. "My King, thank goodness I found you, I-"

The Persian paused for just a second, eyes locking on the Eevee. She recognized him, and he recognized her. That second where they stood in a deadlock felt like hours, but once the second was over, she pounced.

Liam's training kicked in almost too late. He rolled to the side, dodging her sharp claws, and crashed into the chairs at the dining table. The Persian pivoted and lept at him again, only to be stopped by the large white paw of the Beartic king.

"What do you think you are doing?" he asked, becoming enraged at her behavior. "He just saved my daughter's life, in case you didn't know, and he is a welcomed guest at our castle."

"That's the Equilibrian!" she hissed. "He's the son of the Descending One who escaped right from under my paws!"

Dahlia's eyes widened in disbelief. She turned around to ask Liam if it was true, but as soon as she met his terrified eyes she knew. He scrambled to his paws, faster than anyone she had seen, and bolted out the door. It made sense, now, why he didn't know her or anything going on in the Ultra Kingdom. _I should've known._

Liam ran, heart beating crazily. Memories of the day before flashed in his mind. He was afraid, so he was running. The only difference between then and now was his location. Yesterday was the frontline of war. Today was in enemy territory, making it probably the more dangerous one.

Several pokemon started to chase him, including the Persian who had kidnapped him in the first place. He thanked Ronan for training in running as he managed to put a good distance between him and his pursuers and keep it that way. That was the only clever thing he did. He was constantly taking random turns with no idea where he was going. The only thought in his head was fear.

As he turn another corner, a claw grabbed his shoulder and pulled him into darkness. Another claw covered his mouth, keeping him quiet, and through a small sliver of light in the wall he saw his pursuers continue down the hall, unaware of where he had gone.

Liam twisted and the claws that held him back let him go. "Quiet, Liam!" the voice snapped in a hushed tone. "I'm trying to help you here."

He turned and caught a small glimpse of the Weavile from the light that shone through the door. "Dahlia? What're you-"

"I'm getting you out of here. Listen closely and pay attention because this is the one and only chance you get."

She grabbed him and pulled him further into the darkness of the tunnels in the wall without any words. The few times he tried to say something, she shushed him and wouldn't hear any of it. As they traveled in silence, he could hear the sounds of pokemon conversing about him. The only thing in his mind was getting out of the Ultra Kingdom, but Dahlia was slowly inching her way in his thoughts.

Liam stopped, and a bright light suddenly flooded his sight. When his eyes somewhat adjusted, he saw a vast desert spread over the horizon.

"We're outside the kingdom now," Dahlia explained, taking the canteens from around her shoulder. "If you go that way, you should reach a military Terram base in a day or two. Here's some water."

"Thank you." Liam looked her in the eyes and smiled.

"I'm not doing this out of the kindness of my heart," she explained coldly, stepping closer to him and forcing him to step out of the tunnel into the hot sun. "Your kingdom is vile as well as the Terrams who you've aligned yourself with. The only reason I am helping you is because you helped me. I am simply repaying my debt, and trust me the next time I see you I will show you no kindness and no mercy."

She threw the canteens of water at his paws and slammed the hatch shut, leaving him to his fate in the desert.

...

Days had passed since word of the retreat. Fear and gloominess hung over the Fire Kingdom and Ice Domain, matching the cold, bitter air as winter crept on. When the severely wounded soldiers arrived back home, hope seemed to fall away. The Libras were hurt as well and required two days in the infirmary. After that, everyone walked around hanging their heads and many festivities were canceled. No one seemed to be in the mood. The Terrams were losing the war after the defeat, so everyone had to the right to be a little out of it.

The only thing that seemed to keep pokemon going was the rumor of the new Libras, although nothing official had been announced from either the king or the queen. Still, several civilians stole glances of a Jolteon and a Lucario with colored bands over the past week fighting Buzzwole and Xurkitree. Plus, soldiers who had seen the new midnight form Lycanroc talking to Tapu Bulu helped spread the rumors as well.

The worst part: Liam was gone. After the retreat, Ronan and Kai got everyone to search for him, but he was nowhere to be found. Leona took it the hardest. No one knew what had happened to him, but she thought of the worst possibilities.


End file.
